Come on Down!!!

So, every time that my family goes to Disneyland we go to The Horseshoe Review. For those of you who have never been, it's a show put on by four men who all play string intruments and they are hilarious. They are all extremely talented and they put on a great performance. It's held in an old saloon and they pretend to be hillbillies, all while playing their different instruments. Anyway, it's great. Next time you're in Disneyland, be sure to check it out! Okay, so they used to do this thing where they call somebody from the audience up onto the stage. Two years ago I went to Disneyland with my parents, younger sister and best friend Erica. We went to one of the showings and the place was packed out, so we grabbed a table in the back. As we were waiting for the show to start, my dad leaned over and told me how he's gotten called up on stage twice. He was telling me how he's sat in different places just so that he wouldn't get picked and he always gets picked anyway. He also assured me that they don't do this anymore. Liar. The show starts and we are all laughing and having a good time. And then the lead guy heads into the audience to pick "a pretty gal who has been eyeing us the whole time." I took this opportunity to look very interested in my shoes. It didn't work. He definitely picked me, which meant that I had to go up on stage and play a small violin with them. I really don't like being up in front, especially when I have no time to mentally prepare! I was really horrible and embarassed, they were really nice. So, needless to say, we had a good laugh! A couple of months ago I went to Disneyland with my parents and sister and brother-in-law. We went to the show and purposefully sat in the very front so that we wouldn't get picked. Not so much! They made fun of us and Oregon the whole time and then when it was time to call somebody up front, they didn't even peruse the audience. They picked my sister! It was hilarious!! So, I wanted to share a couple of pictures of us. Arlene Shnitzer and the Oregon Symphony, here we come!
Ps. I couldn't find the picture of myself, but it's almost exactly the same. The same guy is even in it!! Too funny...

Mi Familia

I love my family. It makes me sad that there are so many people out there who hate their families, who only think of anger and bitterness when they think of those who share their blood. The older I get, the more I realize how lucky I am. I like to say that we're abnormally normal. :) I love that we actually like hanging out. I love that I talk to my mom every day because I want to. I love that we can watch home videos and laugh until we (literally) pee our pants. I love that we can do boring things and make them fun. I love our conversations that we have. I love playing Catch Phrase...especially with my mom who unknowingly turns into a racist when we play (I don't blame her for being ignorant to what Napster really is). I think what I love the most is that they are people who make me feel safe. No matter what kind of a day I had or what I'm going through I can come to them and feel okay. I always feel special and beautiful and loved when I'm with them. I also love that we can be complete dorks together--which does happen a lot. Sometimes I wish that I were a fly on the wall so that I could see us from the outside. :) So here are a few pictures...Love you guys!!

L-R: Curtis and I at Multnomah Falls, with Jane and Jenny, my mom reinacting the most disturbing face possible while Jane and I laugh so hard I almost couldn't breathe, Dan and Angela on their wedding day (I don't have any bad ones of them, so they get a good one), Ty...Wow, Jen and I doing what we do best, Jane and I at the Cheesecake Factory in San Fransisco, Jenny and I (yes, that's a parking garage), mom and dad asleep in NOTRE DAME...seriously??, Jen and I making funny faces with Jake (starting him off young), with mom and dad at Versailles, Jane and I (and then they repeat because I couldn't figure out how to not do that...)!!

Claudia Rose

So, I get to spend my days with the most adorable baby. I figure that at the rate I'm going, who knows if I'll ever have any of my own, so God has decided to bless me with the chance to take care of Claudia instead. (Or something like that...!) I work between 45-50 hours a week and we have a lot of fun together. I'll admit, I turn into a huge dork when I'm with her. I'll do just about anything to keep her happy--even if that means singing "The Wheels on the Bus" as loud as I can with obnoxiously large hand motions, or stomping around the kitchen pretending to be a dinosaur. I'm pretty sure that if any of my friends saw me, we wouldn't be friends anymore... Hey, if you spent the majority of your time with a five month old who didn't talk back, you'd go a little looney too! It is fun though because a couple of my good friends have babies and so we are able to do playdates. It's great to have adult conversation! So anyway, I wanted to share a couple of pictures of Claudia (or Monkey or Peanut Butter as I affectionately call her!).

More random facts

So I don't lead an interesting life. It's been hard for me to come to grips with, but it's true. It's been almost a month since I last posted. It's sad to me that I've had nothing interesting to post since then...I give myself a Bemily award for being lame. At least I get an award for it!! So, for your own enjoyment, I've decided to post some more random facts about myself. This is only because I've realized that I have quite a bit of crazy in me. For those of you who think that I'm perfect, stop reading because you'll find out it's not true!! :)

1.) Whenever I drink my arms tingle. I'm not really sure why...It happens right around my elbows and it's very strange.

2.) I'm double-jointed in my fingers and I can turn my wrist all the way around (we're talking 360 degrees here people). My best friend Erica sometimes comes up behind me, sniffs the air and says, "Does it smell like cabbage to you...?" For those of you who don't get that, she's calling me a Carni, aka Circus Freak. Nice.

3.) I'm obsessed with plucking my eyebrows. Like I do it almost every day. Well, they are my favorite part of my body. It's hard to have perfect eyebrows, but somebody's got to do it.

4.) I have discovered that I have an obsessive personality (thanks Christoph!), but not a compulsive one. Man is this true!! When I get stuck on something I totally go crazy with it. Newest obsession: The Office. Seriously people, jump on board here!!

5.) There is not a lot of food that I really hate, but there is a lot of food that I won't eat. I don't like normal things like tomatoes and mushrooms (wouldn't eat either if you paid me), eggs, pancakes, bacon, sausage, tomato sauce, lots of different breads, ham, swiss cheese, ect. But I do like random food like Brussle sprouts, asparagas, artichoke hearts, kalamata olives and feta cheese. Weird.

6.) I totally have social anxiety. When I think about going somewhere where I don't really know people or there is a lot of people in a small space I totally freak out. I actually get nauseous and break out into hives on my chest. I just really don't like meeting new people. I get freaked out having to do the whole small talk thing. I'd rather just stick with the people I already know, although I have been meeting new people lately because of Young Life and they're all fabulous.

7.) Coffee does nothing to me except make me have to pee. And it makes me sick. But in regards to keeping me awake?? Not so much.

8.) I really don't like having attention on me. For some reason I always end up in front of people, but it really stresses me out. I get really self-conscious and stumble over my words and am a complete train-wreck. Not so fun!

I guess that's it. It may not be a story Chris, but at least it's a post!! Sorry that I don't have any stories about destructive one-legged semi-truck drivers...

And the "Bemily Award" goes to...

For those of you who are fans of "The Office" (and for those of you who aren't, what's the matter with you??), you know all about the "Dundee" awards. Michael Scott (played by Steve Carell) is the manager of a paper company office and he thinks that he's the best boss in the world. In reality, he really sucks. He does likes to make things spicy around the office and therefore he came up with the Dundee awards. (The office that they work in is called Dunder Mifflin, hence Dundee.) Every year he makes up specific awards for people, such as "Hottest One in the Office" or "Spicy Curry" (to the girl from India) or the "Don't Go In There After Kevin" referring to the time he went into the bathroom after Kevin and it was really stinky. Hilarious! He makes a big night of it and all of the employees hate going because he is so ridiculous about it. So anyway, my roommate Emily and I give each other Dundee awards for doing stupid things. Sometimes we even give ourselves dundee awards, like the time my car door slammed on my face and bruised my cheek. I gave myself a Dundee award for being the most Special Ed. Because we do this so often, I've decided that Emily and I should have our own awards, so I came up with the "Bemily" awards (it sounded better than "Embecca"). I'm hereby giving Emily the first ever Bemily award for being the "Funny and Bitter Conspirator." Let me explain. I went to Disneyland this last friday for ONE day. I come home from being gone for ONE day and I notice something weird on my bathroom counter. I walk cautiously in and smell the sweet scent of strawberries. I looked closely at the counter and saw this blubbery, red rectangle. I looked closer and realized that she had put my razor in jello!!!!! (Reference: The Office, episode one, season one.) I died laughing and then texted her. Her response? "Yeah, you better think twice about going to Disneyland without me." She, who just went to Hawaii for a week and will soon be going to Baltimore and New York City, said this. Okay, so you get the first Bemily award, but beware. I'll get you my pretty!!

Well, C'mon, they are related to me! :)

Okay, so I know that I just posted, but I have to brag for a minute about how cute my nephews are!!! I know that pretty much everybody that reads this also reads my Sister-in-law and brother's blog and already read all about Jake and Ty, but they are just too cute for words. I wanted to post a couple of pictures of them because, well basically, because I can. :)



Jake being cute and making funny faces!

He's so dang sweet!!

Brothers!! I love that they're holding hands in both pictures. Just makes me melt...

Ps. All pictures provided by my cell phone! Gotta love modern technology! :)

In a Nutshell

I know, I know. It's been a month. I knew that I was going to suck at this!! Well, a lot has happened since I got "tagged" but, incidently, my camera won't let me download pictures onto the computer and I didn't want to post without pictures. I'll just have to roll with it and use a couple that I have. So, big things have happened with me. I slept with a boy. It's about time right? Don't worry, it was my dog Auggie that I bought! He is the CUTEST dog in the world. The only problem was that I got so stressed out by having to take care of him that I sold him 48 hours after I bought him. Only me. I cried like I was getting paid, but I know it was the best thing. I couldn't care for him the way he deserved to be cared for because of my job, so I sold him to a nice girl up in Vancouver, WA.
Auggie Stump (only for 48 hours though. Now he's Oscar. Really?! That's a horrible name. He does NOT look like an Oscar at all. So sad...)

The day after that I started a new job as a nanny. I work about fifty hours a week for a family in NE Portland and I LOVE it. Claudia is about 3 months old and she is so much fun. She's already rolling over on her own and loves to smile, laugh and go for walks. (I sound either like she's mine or I'm putting a personal ad in the paper!) Her parents are fabulous and I really feel blessed to have found them. I know that this is where I'm supposed to be right now.

Little Miss Claudia!

I also was able to hang out with six students that came over from Slovenia. We had SO much fun with them. I miss them a lot...We were able to show them all over Oregon and Washington and they also went down to California. And one of them wants to set me up with his cousin...Hm. Any advice on long-distance relationships?? (Totally kidding.) They loved it here and didn't want to go home. My favorite part was the second day they were here and we were driving downtown and the boys were riding with me. They were making fun of my car because it's "plastic." Zan (pronounced Jon) started going off about how everything here is plastic, "Everything here is plastic. The food, the cars, the girls..." I told him to wait until they went to California because the girls are REALLY plasitc there! It was funny. :)

The Slovenes! L-R: Urban, Anja, Tjasa, Nika, Zan and Matic (The one with the cousin :)

Other than that, I'm just chugging along. Keep your eyes peeled for an update in another month! And to those who stuck it out and read this whole thing, thanks for being a real friend!

I, too, have been tagged

So my wonderful sister-in-law tagged me and now I have to write eight interesting facts about myself. I have to post these rules first.

The Rules:

1. I have to post these rules before I give you the facts.
2. Each player starts with eight random facts/habits about themselves.
3. People who are tagged need to write a post on their own blog (about their eight things) and post these rules. (If you don’t have a blog, email me)
4. At the end of your blog, you need to choose eight people to get tagged and list their names.
5. Don’t forget to leave them a comment telling them they’re tagged, and to read your blog.

Fact #1: I have a very frightening obsession with sharpies. Not the thick ones, but the fine-tipped ones. I love them so much that I asked for them for my birthday. Yeah, I know.

Fact #2: I hate the snow. I think that it ruins lives. It may be pretty for a couple of hours, but then it stays around for days and you're forced to stay in your house and be miserable. Or go outside and be miserable because you can't feel your toes and your nose gets so frozen you could chip it off with an ice pick.

Fact #3: I don't like Spaghetti. It's the tomato sauce that throws me off. I'd almost rather saw off my pinky finger with a kitchen knife than eat a big plate of spaghetti.

Fact #4: Whenever I see people wear jean on jean I actually cringe. I can't handle a jean jacket with a pair of jeans. Seriously people, figure it out! So not cute.

Fact #5: I have a slight case of OCD. I have to eat things in even numbers or I freak out. Why would somebody eat seven M&M's? I have to eat even numbers so that I can chew them evenly on both sides of my mouth. Don't worry, I know that I'm crazy. At least I'm aware of it right?

Fact #6: I have to sleep with a fan every night. It's the noise and the breeze. And if for some reason I have to sleep in the same bed with somebody they CANNOT touch me. I can't handle somebody touching me while I sleep. I may just hulk out on you!

Fact #7: I love fashion. I think it would be the best job in the world to be Stacey London from "What Not To Wear." There are just so many people out there that need help...I love fashion magazines, fashion tv shows and anytime I read a book I can't help but focus on what the characters are wearing.

Fact #8: I have touched petrified dinosaur poo. Enough said.

Okay, Emily, Joy, Zoe, Jess, Julie Brown, Erica, Stacy and Kasey...YOUR IT!!

Ode to Emily

Emily Fitz is so nice,
she's got sugar but even more spice
She's crazy and funny and sleeps all day,

only because she saves people from going away.

A nurse she is, a doctor she's not,

but boy, in those scrubs she sure looks hot!

She likes to run and bike around town,

usually wearing a smile but sometimes a frown.

She's sporty and fun and cute as can be,

and (unlike me) she hardly ever has to pee.

She's clutzy and trips and falls a lot,

I really hope she never gets shot.

She loves to lick the brownie batter off of the spoon,

and every day she makes the guys swoon.

She likes to shop at Nordstrom for pretty dresses,

and she has long, brown and blonde tresses.

We love to reinact "So You Think You Can Dance,"

and when I'm not home she practices her prance.

She leaps and jumps so high to the sky,

it makes me gasp and say, "Oh my!"

She loves to go downtown on the Max train,

even though most of the people on it are insane.

We laugh and laugh 'till our stomachs hurt,

and we borrow clothes 'cause we wear the same size shirt.

My roommate is very special and unique,

she always does the dishes left in the sink.

I'm so blessed to have her in my life,

she helps me through my turmoil and strife.

Without Emily where would I be?

Probably somewhere crying or washed out to sea.

Thank you Em for all that you do.

and know that I will always love you! (Lakisha style--totally in concert!)

Against the Rocks

For those of you who don't know, I'm a pessimist. A pretty hard-core one. I remember the day I figured it out. My sister and I were in the kitchen and there was a cup of water on the counter. She asked me if the glass was half-full or half-empty; obviously the cup was half empty. Hence, the pessimism! (Thanks Jen. It didn't really help that you pointed at me and laughed!!) So, I'm cursed with constantly trying to fight the cloud. In all actuality, I like to say that I'm a realist. Not only does it sound better, which I'm all for, I think that it makes more sense. I don't walk around ready to kill myself because the whole world is going to pot, rather, I see the reality in all situations and don't get my hopes up. (It all makes perfect sense to me!) So anyway, lately I've been feeling really bogged down. It's really hard for me to not allow my circle of influence get swallowed by my circle of concern. I get really effected by people, their decisions and wanting to control things. I have a hard time when things are feeling out of control and I frantically try to do whatever I can to hold onto what I feel like I need to have a grasp of. These past couple of weeks have been especially hard for me feeling overwhelmed, out of control and burdened. Today I was at Hallmark and I came across this card. The picture of the little girl struck me. She's so small compared to the rocks. And I know she thinks that she's holding them up by pushing her little arms up there as hard as she can. Yet, I also know that if she lets go, they will most likely stay exactly where they are. She's not holding up the rocks, she's stressing herself out by not wanting to let go so they don't fall. I realized that this is me. I stress out trying to control things that I have no control of. I push against the rocks until my arms ache, not willing to let go for fear of what will happen. I saw myself in that little girl, but it struck me how silly I am. God's got control. He doesn't need my pudgy little arms pushing against the rocks because all it's doing is stressing me out! In a strange way it was comforting looking at the card and knowing how big God is and how he's got it. What a relief because as much as I think I want it, I really don't. He's much better at it than I am! :)

Shot Through the Heart

Last night Emily called me and asked if I wanted to go to the American Idol tour for tonight and I was totally all about it. She got tickets from one of her friends at dance who gave lessons to people that worked for a radio station and gave him free tickets. (Thanks Keloha!!) So we were huge dorks and went to it very excitedly! Now, I'm an American Idol fan. I even vote...I know. I knew that I would have fun, but I didn't realize that I would turn into a thirteen year old girl. I'm surprised that Emily still wants to be my friend. I even embarrassed myself. I've had a slight crush on Blake Lewis since this season ended, and it hit it's peak tonight. When he walked on the stage I screamed like a little girl and almost soiled my pants. Seriously. Our seats were within spitting distance and I honestly thought about trying to leap on stage. I'm pretty sure that I would have broken something, but it would have been worth it! I took way too many pictures that didn't turn out, made him my wallpaper on my phone and recored him and Chris Richardson singing for almost five minutes on my phone. It really is sad. But it was SO FUN!! I'm so glad that I have Em to go out with and make a total and complete fool of myself and she loves it as much as me. :) I may not be able to talk for the next few days because my throat is raw and I almost had to bring a spare pair of pants, but it made for a fun saturday night! (At least I wasn't as bad as that poor girl that cried at every episode, although I kind of felt like her...)This is us so excited to be there! Wahoo!

Oh boys...

So, I've been trying to come up with something new to blog about and I've got nothing...Until tonight. I don't want to keep my eager audience waiting any longer!! For those of you who don't know, I'm a nanny. Let me tell you, it's great birth control (not that I need it)! Tonight I was watching two little boys and we were making dinner. I asked it they wanted apples and they eagerly agreed to it. Zander loves the apple slicer (it's like the one from Pampered Chef for those of you who are familiar with it) and wanted to slice the apple himself. I set it out on the counter and turned around to wash the apple. When I turned back around, he had whipped out his "Little Zander" and had stuck "it" through the whole in the middle of the slicer, yelling, "I'm going to slice my ----- (censored) off!" Seriously??!! I almost died. Needless to say, I soaped it up nice and good before we did any slicing! The best part was that I conveniently forgot to tell those who partook of the apple about the little incident...don't worry, I forgot and had a slice myself. If I die tonight, it's been a great life! :)

Independence Day

I don't like the 4th of July. I try every year to like it and I just don't. There is a reason though; my brother died July 4, 1988. It doesn't seem fair to me that he was born on a holiday (December 31 1986) and died on a holiday. Every year when people are celebrating the holiday, bbqing with friends and shooting off a dazzling fireworks display, I'm desperately trying to not think about Gary and the worst day of my life. Obviously, my memories of that tragic day are horrible, but I think that because I am by nature a pessimist, I only dwell on the negative. I have very few memories of Gary, but the ones I replay in my mind are of the hospital that day, seeing him wracked with tubes to help him breathe or the times I would take his picture and sneak up to his room when nobody was looking and cry until I felt sick. The only time I remember going to his grave was when I was little--I don't remember exactly how old. I do remember that we wrote him messages and stuck them in balloons and let them "float up to heaven." I don't know if I'd been back since then. I'm not sure what's held me back all these years of going up to see him. I think in some ways it was fear; fear of feeling such an intense loss that it actually makes my insides hurt. I've already spent nineteen years trying to heal from that and I didn't want to re-open any of the deep heartache that I've felt. But today I faced my fears and I went up to see him. It was actually an amazing experience. It took me a little while to find his grave, but once I did I just sat with him for awhile. There was nobody really there, which was nice. This was something that I wanted to do by myself, in complete solitude. I think that there was some healing that happened there. As a child I used to worry about him; worried that he was scared and lonely. Going up to his grave as an adult was freeing for me. I've always known that he was with Christ, but today it became more real to me. His gravestone is a memory, a representation of his life, but he's not there. As I sat there talking to him silently (I tried talking out loud and it was just weird!) there was a warm gentle breeze that washed over me and I felt peace. There were lots of tears, but the wind brought a calmness over me. I know that Gary is safe, I know that he is happy. I think that we need to mourn, but I think that I was holding onto the pain that I'd felt for all of these years and today I was able to release a little of it. I actually didn't want to leave. I got a feeling of longing and wanting to be with him. It's comforting to know one day that I will...Maybe this year Independence Day won't be as hard. Maybe this year there won't be a looming feeling that I try to pretend away. Maybe this year it will be a remberance of him and a celebration of his life. Don't get me wrong, it will still be hard. There has never been a July 4th that hasn't been laced with pain since he went to heaven, but I have a feeling that this year is going to be different.

My First Blog

Well, I've done it. I've become a blogger. I'm sure that I'll be one of the annoying people that post something new once every six months because, well, my life is just that exciting! I always love looking at everybody's new pictures and frankly, I get pretty angry when it takes people longer than a couple of days to post something new. And now I will be one of those people. Hopefully I don't turn into some of my other peeves and cut people off when I'm driving, only to go below the speed limit. Give me sixty years, then we'll talk! After my roommate Emily made a blog she told me that I should make one too. I responded with, "What am I going to blog about...? 'Well, I woke up late today and then watched some tv.'" Hopefully this motivates me to do more exciting things with my life! And I know that you are all sitting on the edge of your seats, dying to know what those things are...Just wait for it!