Krista - This gets two thumbs down

It has Brad Pitt in it; directed by Robert Redford, the amazing Tom Skerritt. Two cute guys starring as the brothers. This should be a win-win right?

I fell asleep 10 minutes into the film. I could never make it though this whole movie. Completely boring. Now it's been years and years since I attempted to watch this movie, so maybe I could give it another shot, but I don't know that I'll change my mind.

Krista - Favorite Place(s)

Me, on a beach, lying in a hammock under a palm tree. This is pure bliss. Although my redheaded Irish pale skin doth protest too much of this kind of exposure. I love a good beach.




My New England home. For pretty obvious reasons. I kind of adore the gaggle of males that live here on a full time basis. Wish I could be there all the time. Except for in the winter and fall and spring when it's cold.


My two favorite places are complete opposites. Both have their benefits and both have their drawbacks. But when I want to feel happy, I head to either one.

Krista - Why I travel

For love.

Simple answer.


I could be a workaholic. I go in early, stay late, get into fits where I work from home. Even when I am on vacation, I'll still log in and at least check my emails so my inbox isn't so frightening when I return to the office. I've had many employee reviews where I was told that I needed to exercise more of my vacation time. And I always blew it off because I hated taking off and coming back to a giant pile of paperwork.

And then Geoff came for a visit. I planned a few days off before he got in because he was my friend whom I had not seen in 13 years and I wanted to take him to the beaches and other tourist-y stuff around here. Of course once he arrived, things fell into place and we began to immediately make plans to make this long distance work. We set up a schedule of rotating visits (which have not worked at all according to plan) every few months. I have a great vacation schedule at work since I've been there many, many years however his vacation schedule is horrible. So we compromised and I do a lot more of the traveling.

I've now seen New England in every season. Southwest Airlines is a saved favorite website. I get emails from a bunch of different travel savings websites to confirm I'm getting the best deal. I'm a total pro at packing and going through the airport security lines. I have music playlists for the plane and usually have at least one tv show downloaded on my Ipod to watch. I always make sure I have a couple dollars to tip the Sky Cab people who take care of my luggage curbside so I don't have to stand in the line inside the airport.

So my travels now are based in love. Could be worse I guess!

Krista - My Favorite Mistake

Blah, blah, blah - by now you know the story - met Geoff, fell in love, he broke my heart - cue 13 years later he realizes that he made a mistake and we fall in love all over again. You've heard the story, you see the happy ending, you no longer care - and that's okay!

So I'm going to tell a different story. And it's a long one. So be forewarned. When Geoff and I split up, I had to do some thing different. And for about a year and a half, I went a little wild. Ok, a lot wild. I had always, always been a good girl. I went out with my best friend, spent lots of time at a cigar pub called Grumpy's, met new people, dated (or didn't) other guys and had major amounts of fun. I swore I wouldn't fall in love with anyone ever again. Not worth the risk.

And then I met Jeff. I know, I know - same name, but at least spelled differently. But that wasn't the only coincidence. They also had a birthday one day apart. And that was where the similarities ended. I met Jeff at a bar. My best friend and I were out at a place that was becoming a new favorite, and I was totally checking out Jeff's friend. Then a fly flew up into his beer and he very nonchalantly drank the beer real man style without blinking. I looked at him like he was insane and he just grinned at me and made some corny joke. I don't know why, but it made me laugh. We found out that it was the bartender's birthday so I asked him if he wanted to join us in singing "Happy Birthday" to the barkeep. And so began the misadventures of Jeff and Krista.

I was his first real relationship. He had dated of course, but never been in love. It was endearing, watching him stumble over the words the first time he said them to me, like he wasn't sure if he knew them. Jeff was a charmer. He could make anyone feel like they'd been friends for years, and part of how he prepped for this role was by drinking. And drinking lots. But I was 21-22 years old. I didn't understand the grip alcohol already had on him. His nickname at all of the bars was Norm. At first he would wait until noon to have a drink. Then, there would be a "special occasion" which would require him to drink earlier. And since for the first 6 months of our relationship, he did not have a driver's license thanks to a DUI I took on the responsibility of driving us everywhere. We went on a cruise together with a group of friends, and since he worked for the cruise line, he got a major discount on drinks. He spent $350 on drinks on that cruise - with his 50% discount. On a weekend cruise, he drank almost $700 worth of alcohol. And yes, I helped some but I was not a big drinker so my portion of that was minimal.

His father passed away in June of that year. Geoff lived with his dad and it was a bad time. But I was there by his side, helping him keep it together as much as possible. July 4th of that same year, he asked me to marry him. And of course I said yes. We were foolish enough to think that spending the rest of our lives together was a good idea. And we started that plan off by deciding to get married in Vegas by an Elvis impersonator while wearing jeans, white tank tops and birkenstocks. On a Friday the 13th. We were all about the party and the fun. Never taking life too seriously.

Something changed though. I became increasingly aware that getting married meant growing up. Which meant that our lifestyle might have to change. I was in school, trying to figure out what I was going to do for the rest of my life and there he was still drinking like we were at a party every night. So I would get angry, but being 22 years old meant I didn't know the right way to talk things out. I was not blameless. I wasn't pleasant. I was petty, and hot headed, and stubborn, and pushed the buttons, and eventually I pushed the wrong one. We broke up.

I couldn't sleep. I couldn't eat. I barely went to classes. And when I did, I would invariably leave early. I'd thought that he and I would spend our lives together. He wanted to remain friends, but I couldn't do it. We tried to get together and hang out a few times but I needed the clean break. I ran into his best friend about 6 months after we broke up and he told me that Jeff was drinking more than ever and was in bad shape. My heart hurt for him but I knew there was nothing more I could do.

Several years later my best friend and I went to the bar where he and I met on a whim. We were playing a round of pool with another friend, when I felt a tap on my shoulder and there he was. We talked for a few minutes. I showed him a picture of my son and we agreed it was nice catching up. No more resentment or hard feelings. He was a stranger to me. Just a boy I used to love.

In September, 2009, I went on a cruise with my sister. It wasn't the first time I had been back on a cruise since going with him, but for some reason I could not stop thinking about him. Everywhere I went reminded me of our trip. So after I got home I decided to look him up on Facebook. Jeff had passed away the day before I looked him up at the age of 36. Even though it had been almost 10 years since we'd met an loved each other, I was devastated. I cried for the life we didn't have. I cried for the man I fell for, and I cried for the man he eventually became. Our relationship taught me so many things. And I'll always be grateful to him for those lessons. And I think he was also probably grateful for the lessons I taught him.

When I love, I love fully. And losing him at 22 was devastating. And even though he was no longer mine, losing out the opportunity to have one more beer for old times hurt just as much. Maybe in another life we can.

And that's the very long story of the man who broke my heart after Geoff.

I don't have many old pictures anymore, but I've always loved this one of us...and I take full blame for his bleached blond hair - but in all fairness, he asked for it!

Krista - Bad Smooches

It's my fault - I found the list of topics and said I would go down them one by one. I'm supposed to write about my worst kiss.

Don't hate me, but I've been seriously racking my brain and I can not for the life of me think of any bad kisses. I've been seriously blessed in the lip locking department (even if they weren't great boyfriends).

I even went through the old diary to see if I could dig up any bad memories and the closest I've been able to come up with was a kiss I shared with a guy at a Jaycee's dance in junior high. I still wrote it was a good kiss, but very awkward because we had to sneak it in when the chaperones weren't looking. Although, thinking back, all the kisses in junior high and early high school were probably not as good as I remember them. It's a simple matter of experience. When you don't really have any, kissing seems great no matter what.

Dear god, now as I am recalling when I started kissing I've realized my son is only a few years away from these same experiences. I think I'll choose to live in denial.

Krista - First Kiss

Laugh away people - it's the diary which holds all my secrets from the time I was 12 until the time I graduated from high school. This diary starts in 1989, and the story I am about to share is recounted within...because even though I remembered the who of the first kiss, the details were a little fuzzy.

Fall, 1989. Fifth grade. I am the luckiest girl in the class because I am going out with James Chambers. James Chambers was the cutest boy in our grade. He had spiky blond hair and beautiful blue eyes. It was apparently my turn to be his girlfriend that week - as he was so adorable, I think all the girls "went out" with him. And I use the term loosely because we were 11.

So my 11 year old self with my stupid permed hair is at recess with my class. James and I are holding hands, when he leans over and kisses me on the lips. Just a peck, but enough to qualify it as my very first kiss. 2 days later, he breaks up with me.

So my first kiss also goes down in history as my first heartbreak. I think it worked out just fine, since I'd rather just kiss Geoff for the rest of my life <3

Krista - The Purple Ribbon

Alzheimers Graphics


I'm not going to dazzle you with facts and figures because you can google these yourself. What I will explain is how very personal this cause is to me.

My grandfather was my hero growing up. He was intelligent, handsome, charming, and a good person. He is a Korean War vet, retired from the US Air Force. He worked out at the Cape on the space shuttle program before retiring. And he doted on me. We fought of course, as family does, mostly about politics and religion but we were always up for a healthy debate. And when I became more politically conservative, my grandfather was so excited you would have thought I was running for president myself. He could discuss anything at all - throw a topic out there and we could talk for hours. My grandmother would beg us to stop talking sometimes so she could get some peace and quiet!

Right around the time I became pregnant with my son, he started slipping. He couldn't quite remember things the way he used to. He would stutter and get confused about who was around him, or what year it was. My grandmother was convinced St John's Wort for his memory would make it all better, but of course it did not.

After my son was born, my grandfather held him and told me he was very sad. When I asked why, he said "Because I'll never get to see him grow up".

My heart gets broken on a daily basis when I see the stranger that has taken over my grandfather. He no longer speaks clearly. He hasn't said my name since my son was very little. Although, one day a little over a month ago he looked at me and said "I love you" for the first time in years. But that was a fleeting moment, since it has yet to be repeated. He sits in a chair and sleeps most of the day. He can no longer feed himself, bathe himself, or get dressed. This wonderful and amazing man wears diapers so that he doesn't make messes because he no longer has the ability to tell us when he needs to go.

I miss him so much.

I pray that one day there is an effective treatment or cure for this disease. I never want anyone to feel this way seeing your loved ones become a person who has no clue who you are, when once upon a time, this person thought you hung the moon and stars.

Krista - Don't tell anyone...

If I could have any super power in the world, I'd have to say I would go with the one pretty much anyone in a long distance relationship not so secretly wishes for: Teleportation!

How nice would that be - the problem would be solved! Stay home during the day, get to keep my house, my job, and stay close to my family then boom, after work and picking up the boy, teleport up north and sleep up there with my favorite boys who don't live with me! Then when I wake up in the morning, just come on back. No more expensive plane tickets or annoying security checks at the airport. No more stressing over how to end the distance. No more fears about upsetting family if I have to move away.

Yes, this is probably a bit of a selfish desire, but I would also try and use it for good - such as helping teleport others to be with their loved ones for special moments!

Sabrina-Super Strength!

If I had a super power, I think my first choice (although a VERY hard one) would have to be SUPER STRENGTH!

With this power there is so much I could do!

First of all, I would use my power for good.

I think I would definitely keep this power a secret from most for as long as I could. There are a VERY select few who I would tell. I wouldn't want the world to know. I wouldn't want to be a science experiment or a celebrity figure. OR even a super hero. As much as I would love to help everyone there isn't a way for people to know of my powers without everyone worrying about how I'll use them, or how I got them, etc.

I'm going to have to admit that super speed and ice power were very close seconds next to super strength.

As much as I'd like it a kept secret I could see it eventually leaking out to everyone. If someone needed help and I was there and could use my super strength to help them then I would, and if the situation was in front of the public then I'm stuck with people seeing it and then I guess the secret would be out, BUT if I had super speed then I would help out and get out of there as soon as possible and no human eye would witness it because I'd be so fast!

So as much as I would probably choose super strength in the long run, it would be VERY hard to just settle with that without thinking of a few other choices I could pick. If I could have super strength and super speed then I'd be very happy with that choice.

Krista - Can I get a witness?

The topic this week is kind of a fantasy - and I'm going to be honest and tell you straight forward I've had a hellacious week and I'm not the most imaginative. So here's the setup:

You are now in the witness protection program... What is your new name? Where are you relocating? What did you witness? Who is coming with you?

Let's pretend for a moment that I've caught on to some massive conspiracy plot to overthrow the government by using cheese. Why cheese? Why not. Needless to say, my information places me in mortal danger while we wait for the legal process to conclude and I'm taken into protective custody.

Since we're going ridiculous here, my new name will be the same as my porn name (you know, where you take your first pet's name and the street you grew up on? Not an actual porn name - freak!) - Brandy Avilez. I know, it's kind of hot.

Naturally my son is coming with me. Can't leave him behind. And I'm going to tell them they have to take Geoff and his son along for the ride. Rest of the family; I'll contact you through those secure ways they show in the movies as I am able. Sorry! There's too many of you.

If you know me at all, you are aware of my distinct hatred of cold weather so naturally I'll be sent to live in some cold place that doesn't exist - like North Dakota, where I will be forced to become a housewife and learn to make knick knacks at home which I will pray to be featured on Regretsy.

I am really, really glad none of this would ever happen though!

What's your story?

Luce-Reading

Ha. I read this topic and had to laugh. I don't remember the last time I picked up a book to read. And I was an English teacher. This is something I really need to get back into and start once again. From this blog entry I will inspire myself to pick up a book this week and get into the habit once again. :)

Luce-Weaknesses

My weaknesses.

Sometimes I can get overwhelmed very easily.
I can be very negative about myself...
My self esteem needs work.
I put things off till the last minute.
My OCD.
I am wayyy too loving.
I am not a very motivated person anymore.

Krista - Survivor In Death

I am totally out of new books right now so I've been thumbing through some old favorites.

The last book I read cover to cover was Survivor In Death by Nora Roberts writing as J.D. Robb. I love this series. I am completely addicted. I have read every single one of the entire series and own the majority of them.

The series is set in the future and it revolves around a Lt. Eve Dallas, her insanely rich husband Roarke and their various friends and associates. They are all murder mysteries as Dallas is a homicide cop. There's always a good twist and it's easy to pick up any one of them and jump into the series.

Survivor in Death is a story about a nine year old girl who gets out of bed in the middle of the night just in time to avoid being murdered along with the rest of the family. It's a little sad, but full of adventure and once Dallas catches onto the suspect(s) trail, you're totally hooked to find out why this poor family ended up killed.

I would recommend this one, along with all others to anyone who likes a good murder mystery.

Ryan- Reading...

OK, so, I have to apologise first.

I don't seem to be doing to well following the schedule- life seems to be getting in the way. Ive been working non stop and this past weekend had my aunts funeral, so it has been a very rough few weeks.

Anyways- Reading...
I'm not a huge reader..and when I DO read, it's always in the same genre. I always read books that are true- usually true crime or about WWII and the Holocaust. Things that are of great interest to me ( call me weird, but I think there's so much to learn).

The last book I read I honestly don't remember the name. I rented it from the library and it was about 6 children that went through the Holocaust- Kind of like a short version of Anne Frank but with 6 people and not 1. Its a bunch of diaries. It was so good.

I've been reading Helter Skelter now for quite some time, but can never seem to finish it lol its a very big book and i'm a slow reader... hopefully one of these days i'll finish it!

Sabrina-Love Reading!!

The last book I read was started and finished this past Friday. It's called Hit List by Laurell K Hamilton. The book is part of a series (the Anita Blake Vampire Hunter Series). I have read the whole series, and this was her newest book which just came out.

As far as the book goes, it was rather short. I was a little disappointed in the length of the book and expected a little more out of it, but all and all I liked it.

As the series goes I love it. There are a few books that I was a little disappointed in compared to others. Also some of the books could have cut out the sexual scenes, but regardless I still love the series. I can't wait to read the upcoming books from this series as they aren't finished yet. I wish I wouldn't have found out about the series until they were all published since it seems to take forever for the next book to come out. Since it takes so long to come out, I get involved with other series and books and sometimes get confused between a few different series.

Now as I wait for the next book in Hamilton's series I shall find another interesting book to read. Have any suggestions? Let me know of a good book or two.

Krista - Weakness

So on the flip side to last week's blog topic, today we are here to discuss my weaknesses. It's funny how I seem to be able to come up with these far more easily than I did with last week's topic. Maybe it is because we are all our own worst critics.

I'm stubborn and never like to admit to being wrong.

I get overwhelmed and then procrastinate on doing things I really should just get done.

I hate playing games where I won't win. I'm an awful loser.

I'm an Irish redhead, so I have a temper. If you catch me at the wrong time, you really won't like me. Plus, I'm a Cancer & we're known for our mood swings!!

Sarcasm is a second language to me, which doesn't always come off in the best light when trying to communicate.

I tend to expect better out of people than I really should, then get upset when they fail to follow through.

I tend to care too much sometimes about situations or people I shouldn't. Remember that whole I love you for life thing from last week? This is where that gets to be a bad thing.

And if I tell you much more about the bad sides of me you'll all hate me!

I tend to see a lot of things in black and white, which is great for strong convictions but not great when I am trying to learn to compromise.

I'm sure if you know me, you can add to the list all sorts of other flaws.
So go for it :)

Sabrina-Tired Of the Flaws

I have a few weaknesses. One of my main ones right now is getting me very worried and making me definitely want to change my ways.

I just got enrolled into this great program. It's cheap (compared to anything else) and it's what I've been wanting to do. The program is 10 months long (approx) and I will help me become a Dental assistant. As great as all this sounds, I'm super nervous because I've had a problem with sticking to college. I have dropped out a few different times, and I'm ticked at myself for it. I want to stick with this, but I know it'll be hard and something I need to do for myself. I'm tired of being a flake with school and want to finally stick with it. It's odd because I love school and I did pretty well in high school, but I can't seem to stick with college. I'm hoping my determination to stick with it this time around stays, and I finally succeed! This is my greatest fear and weakness right now.

I'm also scared of needles/shots. they are definitely a weakness of mine. i try to avoid them at all costs. ALSO, this course I'm doing requires me to get TB tested and make sure I'm updated on all my shots (which means I'll probably have to get shots) and as far as I'm concerned if I'm willing to get shots, then I can definitely sit through school!

Besides my fear of needles and my weakness of flaking on school, I'm also scared to fail. Fail at school. Fail at life basically. I need to keep positive about things and yet I always have a tendency to think of the negative too, which is both good and bad I guess. My weakness is I don't have faith in myself as much as I should have.

Another weakness of mine is Kyle. My boyfriend, my love, my life. He is someone besides my dad and brother that I wake up for everyday of my life. Their opinions of my actions are my weaknesses too. I always set out to please them with everything I do. When I fail, I'm not only failing myself, but them as well and that really hurts me more. Hopefully this will help me finally succeed.

My personal strengths....

I don't take crap from anyone anymore.
I can say NO. This was a big one for me to learn.
I love with all my being.
I am a mathematical nut.
I am great at public speaking.
I am great at home decorating.
I am quite the comedian.
I am a great Mommy.

Krista - This is my least favorite question during interviews

So what are my strengths?

One of my greatest attributes would probably be loyalty. If you're my friend, or a loved one, I love you for life. Even when you least deserve it. There are very few exceptions to this rule.

Another would be that I have a great sense of responsibility. If it's on my shoulders, I will handle it. I may cry some, but I take care of what needs to be done.

I make awesome desserts. Seriously.

I learn quickly on most things. New software systems, new fields, new toys that need to be put together. Let me get my hands on it and I will figure it out. And I will own it. Because I don't like things done half way.

I'm honest and highly ethical. My mom taught me a very valuable (and painful!)lesson when I was younger: telling the truth gets you in a lot less trouble than lying and being caught later. Plus lying is so disrespectful to people. They deserve better than that.

I work very hard no matter what I am doing, whether it is at my job, or at home with my son, or even just playing a game. (There is a flip side to this but I'll elaborate when we write about or weaknesses).


I haven't had to answer this question in a long, long time so I am struggling with it. So I cheated and asked Geoff what he thought my strengths were and his response: Loyalty, dependability, family values, and financial sense. Except, don't take that family values to mean hard core conservative christian, because I'm not. But that is a whole other topic for discussion.

Tiffinnie - Elverta

Elverta, California is home... to me at least.

I grew up in a house that my grandparents bought before my mom was born and then my mom lived in all of her life and her children lived in most of their lives... before we ventured out.

Home is three houses away from a horse ranch, and also behind a pig farm... Home happens to have no sidewalks and the road was last paved when I was about 11 years old... I remember because I was walking home from school one day with my best friend and the pavement was still sticky... there were black bubbles and my shoes stuck a little like I had stepped in soda or something.

The town is in Sacramento but not exactly... its right on the border between Sacramento County line and Pleasant Grove line. There are HUGE amounts of empty field and dust gathers in the house like it belongs there. The house I grew up in has 5 bedrooms (two that were added on) and two bathrooms (one added on) and a half acre of land... Being that my family is made of pack rat freaks we had our fair share of junk in the backyard... cars... motorhomes... just general garbage... it was horrible... now its all cleaned up though :D


I wouldn't trade that place for anything <3

Sabrina-My Personal Strengths

I have a lot of strengths..

CURIOUSITY..if I dont know something I want to learn it. I dont want to be told something, i want it to be shown to me so I may do it too. Although my curiousity could also be a weakness I look at it as a strength of mine.

FORGIVENESS..I often give people more than one chance with things. My mom has had more forgiveness from me then I ever believed I was even able to give. Ive gone through so much negative things with her, and yet i forgive (but wont forget) all she's put me through.

SELF CONTROL..although at times im on a VERY thin thread with things i'm pretty good at keeping myself from doing and saying things i really want too

KINDNESS..even in bad situations sometimes its best to kill people with kindness. Im generally always polite with people. I feel im almost always in great mood too.

TEAMPLAYER..i work well in groups with others. Life isnt a constant competition, sometimes you need to work with others to get things done vs trying to fight with them to be the better man when really you are just making things worse.

HUMOR..I think I'm funny. I like to make people laugh, and i can step a side and let others be the clown because as much as i like to make others laugh i LOVE to laugh even more!

HOPE..I always remain hopeful even when things are tough and I've found this to be a great strength of mine because it helps get me through things especially without having a mental breakdown. It prevents me from getting to discouraged in stressful situations because I know it will all pass and thats what I focus on. Also hope provides me with strength to live everyday knowing I'll get to where I plan to be in life.

CREATIVE..i find myself to be a pretty creative person. When i set my mind to work it gives me ideas and the ability to come up with wonderous things!

LOVE..i love with all my heart. I would do anything for the people I love. I live everyday for those I love.

PERSISTENCE..this was an iffy one for me too put down, but the more i thought about it the more it seemed to fit me then what i though? Although there are a few things i havent followed to well with this, most i do. I constantly keep at things even when the going gets tough. I follow through until the very end. When i set my mind to do something i finish it. whether it be a hard or easy task, or a long or short one, if i set my mind to it, then it'll be completed.

Brave..even when scared to do something, i give it a try for who knows if I'm going to be scared of it after trying it. I give new things a try, and if i like it then i like it, and if i dont then i dont.

HARD WORKER/MOTIVATION..i work for the things i want. My dad taught me that early and i sincerely thank him for that now. You cant always get what you want, but with a bunch of hard work you'll get there if not pretty damn close. I work hard for what i want and for the bills i have to pay. Im great at motivating myself to do things that need to get done. You cant get anywhere in life sitting on your behind, hard work and determination gets you there!



In general i find myself a strong person mentally and physically. And everyday i work on myself to be the best person i can be.

Krista - "Stand in the place where you live"

I've written about my home town in my other blog, so I don't want to just copy and paste that one for this week. Instead I'll share with you a video of what I hated about growing up here in my home town. This video made the rounds of course throughout most everyone who grew up in our sleepy little town. But afterwards, I'll share with you some of things I now appreciate about my home.



And as a teenager and a young adult, I 100% agreed with this video. There isn't a lot to do for people between the ages of 13-21. There used to be more, the video shows the burned up outside of a skating rink that used to be the place to be. And it sort of unfairly shows a lot of our less developed areas.

Sadly, this place is dying. There is an older population, and we are losing many members of our community due to the space shuttle program being shut down. And I worry about the value of my home in this economy. I know many people affected by these issues, but luckily my job isn't dependent on our local economy so I don't have the same fears as many do.

Alas, I promised some positivity about my home town. Despite the lack of activities for teens and young adults, this is a great place to raise children. It's a laid back atmosphere, lots of nature related activities, and we are only 30-45 minutes east of Orlando where there are theme parks and bigger shopping centers. We're like a suburb of a larger city, just a bit further away. I love being close to the beaches. I love going to the parks and walking by the river. I love (and I will really, really, really miss) watching the shuttle blast off into outer space, although I will not miss the huge traffic that comes along with it. Plus we do have a Starbucks, it's not completely uncivilized! Got a friend with a boat? Plenty of ramps to launch from. You always know some one. There's always a friendly face. I'm not in some huge city where I don't really know my neighbors. They're a lovely older couple who keep an eye out for me all the time. Plus the biggest reason I love it here is because the majority of my family lives within 10 minutes of my house!

By the way - that first video made a lot of city officials pretty upset, so they created a response showing that there is more to this place that just our admittedly sad looking downtown area. It may not be exciting, but as a parent, I'm not always looking for that, so it makes it ok for me.

Ryan- Geek? Yes.

I'm a day late, but oh well, better then the last few weeks.

Ah, Highschool. Honestly... i had a few favourites. American History though, pretty much topped them all. OH and, Geography: Current World Issues.

yes, i was a geek- still am. I love learning about history, the world, politics..anything like that. I think there is always so much to learn.

In highschool... both the teachers i had in those subjects were also my favourite, which i think really contributed to my success in those classes and also to my enjoyment of those subjects.
I miss highschool sometimes. I played rugby, was in concert band, played hockey... i was always busy, always doing something. It was great.

It's funny, because I was all over the place. One day I was playing hockey and hanging out with all my sports buddies..then the next I was playing trumpet in Concert band... then I was out playing rugby, which was/is one of the roughest sports out there(also one of the best!!) then I would be in the library reading a book about history lol.

Highschool taught me a lot about life and those classes really helped me decide what I wanted to study in University.. it was great, but Highschool was DEFINITELY NOT the time of my life lol..

Sabrina-Couldn't be Happier

Was born in San Jose, California. I don't remember anything about living there though considering I lived there through my first few years of life.

SO, For about the past 10 years or more I've lived in the same house. Which is very amazing and wonderful to me considering I moved a lot when I was a kid. I now reside in Sacramento. I honestly LOVE Sacramento.

We receive all types of weather, besides snow, and I like that. I like enjoying several different seasons and not just one constant type of weather. I like the hot, the cold, the wind, the rain. I like it all. I do wish we did get snow though, but then again it's a close enough drive to the snow if I wanted to enjoy it. I'm close enough to the ocean, the malls, the grocery stores, the forest, and all my friend's as well. There is always something close enough to do to and in any weather situation.

I LOVE my home as well. The area I live in is a pretty good one. I love coming to my house everyday and admiring all the work that has been put into it to get where it is today. It makes me all the more proud to live there. And there's always on going projects, so my home is forever changing into something more and more beautiful.

There are so many memories in this city I couldn't see myself living anywhere too far away from it.

The only con about living here is that some of the people are dicks. BUT, I think there's always a few of those everywhere. If I could do without one thing in the area it would be a few of the people that reside here as well. Other then that i don't have any other negatives about the area that I can think of. And as far as I'm concerned, if they don't pop into my head immediately then they aren't really a problem to me.

Luce-Self Pro-claimed Band Geek....

Band Geeks. Raise your hands.

I LOVED my bass clarinet.

I loved band. I was so happy carrying my huge case and knowing that there was one place I could go and be myself. :):):)

This was a hard one to even think about it....because...I graduated in....

1987!!!!!!!!!!!!!! A long long time ago.

I would go to the band practise room whenever I could...because I loved the place. I could be me and get into my beautiful music. :):)

Tiffinnie - Highschool art class

In highschool there were a few things that were horrible... being tripped and kicked and pushed... but all of that went away the minute I walked into the art room. Freshman year that room became a sort of sanctuary for me... The shredded aluminum cans painted and pushed together hanging from the light fixtures by fishing wire, large plaster masks sculpted and painted and clear coated hanging from the walls above the whiteboard. Wire sculptures sat on the filing cabinets. The room was full of large tables and the room was a creativity breeding ground. The teacher made it feel safe and calming and fun. Entering that room was like entering a whole different world. Art was my favorite subject, my comfort zone.

Krista - A Chorus Girl

I have been doing a ton of reminiscing about high school recently. Mostly because I have my (I don't even want to say this part) 15 year reunion coming up this summer.

My favorite classes were my chorus classes. I took women's choir and the regular choir classes in high school. I totally admit I was a choir nerd. I did show choir with lots and lots of jazz hands. And ridiculous choreography. I watched musicals like they were going out of style. Sister Act was my favorite movie, and I loved Sister Act 2 although watching these movies now kind of make me wonder what on earth I was thinking.

Every year our school performed in the Disney World Carol & Candlelight Processional, which was a huge honor and I got to sing by James Earl Jones one year - he was literally 2 feet away from me. And we performed in County and State competitions. Not to brag or anything, but our music program rocked. We had an amazingly tough director who knew how to make us work. To this day, some of the tricks that he taught us to help save our voices stick with me - I always have lemon juice handy and if I know I'm going to do some karaoke, I stay away from milk (or milk based alcoholic beverages). I wasn't a soloist - as I have horrible stage fright, but I had a strong voice that had a wide range. I sang second alto most of the time but one year, the co-music teacher had us doing vocal exercises and she realized that I could hit some serious high notes, so she moved me to first soprano for a portion of the year. However, I wasn't the diva that most of the first sopranos were so I begged to be moved back to my love alto section. (And I mean that diva comment with much love for my soprano singing friends.)

My favorite memories from school come from that choir room, and from the events we did as a group. My best friends sang with me. And unlike many school choir programs, our choir had some totally hot boys! I was really proud to be involved in our music program. I wish I still had something like that today.

Sabrina-Track Was Where It Was At

Can physical education count as a subject in high school? If it counts then that was for sure my favorite class. The easiest A you could ever get and having the most fun doing it! It was a class i would never skip out on no matter how sweaty i were to get. I absolutely miss the class with a passion. My favorite p.e. class i did was when i was a junior in high school, Weight Training. I was the best girl in my class, and was in the top 10 with the guys for sure. I loved competeting with the guys. It felt good beingon their level and constantly working at bettering myself. I wish i would have stuck with it after high school.

If p.e. doesnt count for a subject, then my favorite actual subject was definitely English. I loved how much fun and easy it was for me to write and read. I still love to write and read. english is definitely something i still love. Its something im good at and something i love. You need to have proper english skills in order to do well in life. Great jobs require good writing and reading skills.

(Sorry for the spelling errors. I wrote this on my Nook and the keyboard is a little small for my fingers. Ill go back and correct errors on my computer as soon as i get the chance.)

Luce-Dream Car...

This will probably show my age...haha.

But I no longer have a dream car. A vehicle is the last thing I care about. I drive a Kia Sedona Mini Van...works great...room enough for everyone and friends...and some day...far in the future I will have a little car again. My favorite vehicle ever was my Ford Focus...electric blue. It was beautiful.

Ryan- Dream car!

Well,

this is kinda hard for me. I love cars, but I don't know much about them! lol.

For ALL my life, i've been in love with Corvettes. I have always thought they were the nicest cars!!
I would take any year of the car lol it wouldn't matter to me; a corvette is a corvette ;)

I know I will never be able to afford one lol so it will always remain my DREAM car :(

Aside from my DREAM car...the car that I really want right now.. or at least in the near future is the new Chevy Cruze. It has been voted like safest car, and its got so many awesome features, and its actually a really nice lookin car! So, hopefully this car will be mine sometime soon lol. I was looking at cars for quite a while, and as SOON as I saw the Cruze I was like "THATS THE ONE!!!!" lol so I know its something I would be really happy with :D

Ryan- Where I want to go...

I'm late again, i KNOW. forgive me? :)

Ok, so... theres actually a few places I'd love to go.

First- Poland. I'm Polish, so I would love to go and see everything, not to mention eat all the food!!! I also love learning about the holocaust. In university, I took a great course and I have a huge interest in it. Auschwitz is there and I would love to go for a tour and see it. I would also like to see if I could find some family there, that'd be so awesome.

Along with Poland, i'd like to go to Berlin... and Germany. Germany for many reasons, but I just think it would be so cool to see. Also Hungary. I have some really close family friends who are from there who say it is such a nice place.. so i would really like to check it out and of course for the food!!

I guess really, other then those places- Ireland. I would love to see all the castles!!! Not to mention, my favourite band is from there :D The booze, the food..all the scenery, it would be one hell of a trip.

Aside from those places... some other ones i'd like to go to, to just see are : Australia, England, Italy ( have a lot of family there!!) and some nice tropical warm places!! lol

Jamie - Dream Car.

My dream car is the Ford Mustang. I have always loved that car ever since I was a little girl. I just think it's the coolest looking car ever! I don't know I guess I just love the whole race car look! Plus I'm just a car girl. I hate driving trucks or SUV's....

Tiffinnie - 06 Scion xB

oh the beautiful box shaped 2006 Scion xB
Personally I think they are gorgeous and can be turned into clever little toasters... the top can have a vinyl sticker added and make it look like a little toaster vehicle. I adore it. its small but roomy.

Krista - "Guess You Better Slow That Mustang Down"

Want to see my dream car????



Isn't this beautiful? I've wanted a Mustang GT convertible since I first started driving. I live in the perfect spot to own a convertible so I SHOULD have one, right? Except for the insurance rates are higher and it's not especially safe for my little one. Maybe in a few more years. And I don't care what color, except I don't want a yellow Mustang because I hate the color yellow. Love this car.



However, this particular car would be a close second. And I am being a hypocrite because this one is yellow. But it's gorgeous. It's a 1959 Buick Skylark, previously owned by Bob Hope. I love this car as well. I stayed next to this one forever when we were checking out the car museum in Gatlinburg.

You'll note the continued fascination with a convertible top.

Sabrina-'64 1/2

That's right!

'64 1/2 Mustang is what I would own if I could have any car right now!!

This is one of my dream cars! Such a beauty it is. I would, as gross as it is, pee myself if I owned one of these bad boys right now!

I have to admit that I have more than one dream car, but at this point right now I would love to own one of these! I think I would be too scared to even drive it if I had one! Ha ha! I would definitely have the best insurance money could buy and I would for sure have to race it! I'm getting too excited just thinking about all the things I would do if I owned one! *Drool....*

Other than that being one if my dream cars I would have to say I would definitely own a nice ass truck (or jeep) if I could afford it right now. An F350 sounds pretty damn nice. Or even the F150 are bad ass as well. I'm not sure what year I would get, but a big ass lifted truck would make me happy regardless of year I think. I want to have to climb into the sucker to get in, which sucks for my girl friends who are all mostly shorter than I am, for if I can barely get into it, then it will be close to impossible for them. They would definitely be gaining leg muscles from having to jump or climb into the thing! No skirt wearing for them unless they want to flash every one!

Luce-Italy

Where would I travel? As an Italian.. I would have to say Italy. Oh how beautiful of a place, how beautiful of a language, and a place I would love to be. Not only is it romantic, but the food...oh goodness I can't IMAGINE how in HEAVEN would I would be!!! :)

Pasta, sauce, bread.

Ok now I am hungry.

Italy...some day.

Jamie - If I could travel anywhere in the world....

There's so many places I would love to go to. Japan, Germany, Italy, Scotland, England.... I can't just pick one! But I am going to be lame and say I want to go to Chicago. Why? Because A) My boyfriend lives near there and B) I wanna try the famous deep dish pizzas and the famous chicago hot dogs! I would especially love it in the winter because it's so pretty there because of the snow :) I will worry about going outside of the country once I get a chance to see where my boyfriend lived most of his life! My boyfriend and I could take walks together at the Forest Preserve he lives nearby.... throw snowballs at eachother.... build a snowman.... do all kinds of fun things! Yup, I am so lame that I would rather stay in the US then go somewhere else. But that doesn't mean I am not interested in other cultures I am just a lazy traveler, haha.

Tiffinnie - Luxembourg

At one point in my life all I wanted to do was life in Washington... yea, boring... It was the only place I wanted to be in the world. I loved the trees and the green and the cold wet weather. Now? I still love the cold wet weather but I'd like to have that in Luxembourg. There is no real reason other than the beauty of the place. Some people would expect me to say I want to pack up and travel to Brazil (considering that is where my significant other lives) but to be honest, the party life doesn't hold any interest to me... I'm not someone who likes to party, or be in crowds, or have people awkwardly come and try to kiss me on the cheek... I'm big on personal space and the close encounters with other peoples mouths would really bother me... I couldn't handle that... O_O

So, I've set my sights on Luxembourg... and Canada... I like Canada, its close to Washington (where all of my friends seem to live or move to...) but its not in America...

Krista - "Not all those who wander are lost"

This week it's about where we would like to travel most in the world.

Is it cheating to just say I want to be in New England?

Well, maybe not really. I want to be there only because the love of my life is there. Not for any burning desire to live in said part of the world. I'd rather he move here, but that's beside the point.

But let's pretend for a moment that there's no budget, or work or life schedule that I have to adhere to. The traveling I'd like to do most in the world is take the traditional "Grand Tour" of Europe like they used to do in the 1800's, you know, if you were wealthy and weren't forced to become a responsible, productive member of society.

I'd love to travel all over Europe. See the sights of London. Visit the French countryside. Kiss the Blarney Stone in Ireland. Listen to adorable Scottish brogues in Scotland. Drink German beer. Stay the night in some European castle. Hop over to Italy for some wine and take a ride in a gondola. Go to the Louvre and see the statue of Nike - the winged goddess of victory, not the shoe. Take a siesta in Spain. Lie on a beach in Greece. Buy clogs in Denmark. Visit Stonehenge and ponder whether aliens truly built the formation or not.

There's so much I could see or do if I were able to take a trip across Europe like this. Maybe I should actually play the lottery one day...

Sabrina-It's all about them kangaroos mate!

Where would I like to travel to and why?

Ever since I was in elementary school I've always wanted to go to Australia. Which is a little odd since I used to absolutely hate heat. (Now I absolutley love it!).

I want to see the wildlife and get a change in atmosphere. Plus I absolutely LOVE the accents and have to admit I've always wanted an accent like their's!

Other than the scenery and language I really have no other reason that that's the place id choose to go out of all other places in the world.

Hopefully I could travel there one day and see if it's as wonderful as I expect it to be. Or if the heat and snakes make it an adventure I never would persue again! If that wojuld be the case then it would be off to Rome next!

Ryan- Same old, same old.

This week I spent a lot of my time worrying.

Bought a new car the past week, so I did a lot of running around to get the car somewhat fixed up.
I had to make sure i got my girlfriend to work.
I sat around waiting for phone calls for my work.

The weekend, i celebrated my birthday which was really nice- stress wasn't on my mind!


Sorry its a small post- just really wasn't much to my week!

Luce-Another day another dollar...

My week.

Odd that this week is the blog entry. Because the week after I see my SO SUCKS. I go into withdrawal mode and truly just crash into sadness.

Monday- After a 7 hour drive home with my kids trying to cheer me up...we got home and all fell asleep pretty early in exhaustion.

Tuesday-After getting the kids off to school...I spent the day in bed..pretty miserable. Went to work at night...

Wednesday-Spent the day getting my video application for Extreme Couponing. That was a neat experience. Very nervewracking...but got through it..and got to spend time with some great friends. Kids and I had a great night together as well.

Thursday-Cleaned the entire house and worked on my Coupon blog most of the day. Went to work at night.

Friday-Errands, errands, errands. Then work at night...

Today- Worked all day.

Trying to limit my time online....as hiding behind the computer screen is doing me no good for my depression...out there living and trying to put on the happy face.

Jamie - Something exciting.

Well, nothing really exciting has happened to me in the last week. I guess the only thing that could count is that my boyfriend's mom is starting to not be so uptight about him coming to visit here. So that's good. Yeah... don't really have much to say. Lame, I know.

Tiffinnie - An eventful week

Well this has been one of the most eventful weeks I've had in a long time.

Thursday last week I don't remember what I did (clearly uneventful)
Friday I went out with the lovely Monday blogger, Sabrina, and played pool with her and our friend Breauna and Sabrina's boyfriend... DOMINATED!
Saturday I went with my mom and hung out for a while... then tried to convince all the facebookers that a guy named Jesus (hey-zeus) was coming down from the sky on his giant raptor and we were all guna either get eaten by the raptor or be squished under its feet... or we all had really nice hiding spots and it couldnt find us to nom on us...
Sunday was my baby brother's first birthday, I gave him the beautiful Zero I made him and he smiled really big and took it from me and threw it on the ground... then I gave it back and he repeated this process... repeatedly O_O so I decided that he just liked to see me get annoyed and get the toy and give it back to him...

Monday I don't remember really... Tuesday I'm pretty sure I hung out with Sabrina all day, played pool (unsuccessfully...) and then sat in my room for hours going through old pictures and blabbering to keep myself awake... Wednesday (yesterday) I got to go see The Fray and freeze my butt off outside of Thundervalley Casino for the concert... but it was only about an hour or two long... I won a teeshirt from my favorite radio station last night at the concert from a wheel spin thing. That made me happy... and then heard this song (which i had listened to many many times but to hear it live gave me goosebumps all over)

and that leaves us at today, which I am spending working on another crochet project and getting this one finished before starting on more Zero projects because I have a high demand for them from people on facebook. I'll be posting my Etsy link as soon as I put some of the stuff I make up on there and you can get stuff I make on there. I make the Zero plushies before you buy them, but the scarves, hats, leg warmers, and whatnots (blankets/various other plushies) are all made on order. So as I finish a project I think I might add it to my blog so you guys can see the stuff I do ^_^ Hopefully I'll have a new thing to show you each week... Definitely going to try!

anyways that is my epic eventful week (yes, this stuff is much more than I normally do...) 

Krista - A-w-e-s-o-m-e-, Awesome, Awesome, Awesome - Totally!

This is actually a terrible day for me to post this, because the two things that I was most excited about this past weekend, I can't really post anything about them.

So I will go with a few short things that were pretty awesome.

1. My son is off the crutches! The ankle is still wrapped up but now he can walk like a normal person (and help around the house!).

2. I'm training a new person at work, and they seem to be getting it! This is more exciting that you possibly know.

3. I got to eat some shrimp this past weekend...I don't like seafood in general but I love shrimp.

4. I managed to cook a decent chicken and rice meal the other night!

5. Less than 30 days until I see the love of my life again!

6. School is out for summer and my son got an amazing final report card. He's moving on to third grade, yay!

I really wish I could share the other things but one of them has ended up not working out, and the other, I'm not ready to share with the world.

Stay tuned...

Sabrina-Four Locos

This week has been pretty awesome!

I don't think I can list just one exciting thing that has happened this past week.

Let's see..

Friday I went to the pool hall, which I hadn't been to in months, with some close friends and the boyfriend. It was awesome! I missed hanging with my friend, Tiff, and I missed playing pool! Going to definitely have to do that more! I feel a need to have a ladies night soon hopefully!

Saturday I went to an amazing BBQ at a friend's place. They just moved into a new apartment a few weeks ago and had a little BBQ with some close friends as a sort of house warming party. The food was absolutely delicious. Chicken, Tri-Tip, potato salad, watermelon, and so much more yummy food! We played some catch with the football and my friend got a new puppy! The puppy was absolutely so adorable! I was playing with him for most of the first half of the BBQ. The party ran pretty late and then a bunch of people decided to go to the casino afterwards.

THIS MORNING was absolutely terrific! I went to the gym real early with my gym buddy Breauna. We decided to try out a class our gym offered that we had never done before. It was the best workout ever! My muscles were screaming at me by the end and I so enjoyed myself! It is a barbell class that works out your entire  body! It was an hour long class and I was already thinking it was over half way through! Breauna was tired only 20 minutes into it! We did a million squats, lunges, press, lifts, and curls! I loved the class so much! I want to try and stick with it every week. This was seriously the highlight of my week! Finding a class so suitable for me made my week! Most of the woman in the class are so toned and fit, I want to get in there as well! I know I'm going to be sore these next few days, that's for damn sure!

Ryan- Useless Possesion

I'm Late, AGAIN.

I apologize, this past weekend was a long weekend/holiday here.. so Its been very hectic, and my life has been too.

Anyways- My useless possession(s)..

It's kinda hard for me to say.. because I love keeping things. I used to collect hockey cards, McDonalds toys, Coins and stamps lol.. yes i was a bit of a geek.

I guess my most useless possession would probably be my McDonalds toys I keep. All of them are opened, but I kept them all because I really just can't let go of them. I feel like they were such a huge part of my Childhood and I tend to use the excuse- "they will be worth money one day" lol. Some of the toys may be worth some money, but nothing major and most things need to be wrapped to have any sort of value.

My girlfriend always tells me to get rid of them, donate them... do something with them, but I just can't. Hell, i'll probably keep them for MY kids lol. Oh well, Its a big thing to me, so they will probably keep taking up space in my closet :)

Luce-Useless Item

This is a hard entry.

For me I could answer it two ways. I don't keep ANYTHING in my home unless I NEED it. I am very neat and picky...so my home is rid of anything that really isn't of use.

BUT.

Anything in material form honestly means nothing to me anymore. Through divorce I realized just how little anything in my life matters except for my children. My namebrand clothes, purses, furniture, cell phone, even laptop mean nothing in the whole scheme of things.

Anyway...back to try to answer the blog.

Useless item?

I can't think of one thing that I can place in that category...Forgive me..I am really struggling with this one LOL. If I think of one I will come back and edit...for now...

NOTHING. :)

Tiffinnie - Lacking in usefulness

Well about 6 months ago I would have said my wallet was useless... >_>
Judge me if you must but I've only used a wallet for about 6 months now and I take that damn thing everywhere with me because its got all my life in it (except my computer...)

This should be a little hard for me because I'm a packrat... I will keep everything and find a reason for it all!!!
<_< Why do I feel judged?
Paranoia? Nah I can feeeeel you all judging me when I say I collect things... like these two jars I have on the top of my bookshelf... One is a Seagram's 7 bottle and the other is a Georiga Moon (Moonshine) jar... yes, jar... and I don't know why I have them... but I do. and I'm keeping them

I got the moonshine from a guy my mom was dating for a while and the S7 from my mom's friend...
Yep I feel like you will read this and think "wow your moms friends all give you alcohol! how irresponsible of them!" and I'm pretty sure that I was 21 (or almost) when I got both things... I've kept the bottles of things I've emptied since I turned 21 and so far I've got those two and I'm still very slowly working on a giant vodka bottle with the rest of the family... Those bottles are technically completely useless right?

Krista - Who's a pretty, pretty princess?

Me!

This is the most useless object I own. It serves no purpose, just hangs on the wall in my bedroom. I know, completely inane.

Cute story behind it though, so I will share! October, 2009: My friend Tiffany called to see if I wanted to hit the last day of some local festival that was close to her apartment. So my son and I met up with Tiffany and her son to close out the festival. Of course there were rigged carnival games and my son begged me to play one, so I relented. He didn't win (seeing as how they are all rigged and whatnot) and he was so upset. He pouted and said to me "But Mommy, I wanted to win so I could get you the princess crown so you could be pretty...". The guy working the booth either had a heart and thought it was sweet, or else didn't care because it was towards the end of the whole deal, told my son to pick one out and give it to his mom. Needless to say, he was happy he could give me my princess crown and tell everyone how he "won" it for me.

So, there it is. My pretty, pretty princess crown. I'm 32 and have absolutely NO need for this thing whatsoever, but I treasure it. It's a happy memory!

Sabrina-Pack Rat

Humm.. Do I own a totally useless possession?

I don't think I own anything that isn't useless. Sure I have an small television sitting on my bedroom floor that has been there for about a year that I haven't even touched since I upgraded to a bigger TV. Yes I have a few different cell phones that I owned back when I was in junior high sitting in my nightstand along with all their chargers and other wires. Of course I have a billion little nick knacks like stickers and colored paper in a box under my bed. BUT as little as I use them (or don't) I know I may not have use for them now but could at a later date.

What happens when my television goes out? I have a small spare waiting for me.

And what happens when I pull out those old scrapbooks and decide to pick it up again? I have stickers and paper waiting for me.

Also, what would I do if my cell phone or a friend's took a dump on them and they didn't have money for a new one right away or insurance? I have spares.

So as much as I consider myself a slight pack rat, I don't think I have anything useless in my possession. Everything may not be used at this moment, but I know eventually it will be.

Ryan- We loved with a love that was more than love.

I'm a little late here, but I'm gonna get it done!

Define Love:

Well, for me love is a lot of different things. Love can be so many things.. and you can love so many things. There's different kinds of love. You can be IN love, you can love a child, a parent, a sibling.. and even friends.
Love is something that people NEED. We need it to survive. We rely on it to get through life. Everyone wants to meet their soulmate.. that one person who loves them through thick and thin. Parent's will say there's no love like a mother or fathers love- and in that case.. unless you are a parent, you can't define it until you feel it.

Love to me means caring about someone, no matter what. Not giving up on someone when they are down. Listening to someone when they need it, giving advice when they want it, making someone laugh when they need to be cheered up... being there for someone no matter when or for what. Helping someone better their life, help them make better choices and decisions.

Loving someone doesn't mean it has to be "unconditional love"... cuz quite honestly- I don't really think there is unconditional love. When someone hurts us or breaks our hearts... we don't want to push through it with that person. Loving someone means trusting them, being honest and loyal to them. Not giving up when things get tough.. but working on things. When you love someone, you give them a chance ...you do everything you can to make them happy. You don't expect someone to change for you- you learn to grow with them. You talk about things...always communicate.

Most of all...when you love someone- you not only love all the great things about them, but you love their flaws too... because that is what makes a person. If you truly love someone..you love the good and the bad. You love with all your heart and soul because being loved and loving someone is the best feeling in the world.

Luce-What is LOVE?

Love.

Ah. Love is something that can't be defined. As one ages even that definition that you have in your head...changes.

I have loved many times. In many forms and capacities.

I love my friends.

I love my family.

I love my SO.

I love my children. That to me is the absolute best love I have ever felt. They were formed under my heart and everything they do...everything they feel...I feel...everything about them is very important to me. Whatever decision I make, I think of them first. I have to.

Love.

Love for one's self is probably the one I have struggled with the most in my life. Placing importance on your own self...putting YOU first...BIG time. Big time hard to learn, then do.

Love.

I think I am STILL learning how to define it.

Tiffinnie - Accidentally in love

Defining love isn't something that will ever be simple black and white. Love is many things to many people and sometimes nothing to others. Love is an emotion, inconstant and frustrating at times... it brings out the best and worst in us, and for some people it does both at the same time.

For me, love is a thing I learned to shut off. I could, for the most part, ignore emotions... That only lasted for so long. Love is something I thought I would be better off avoiding to avoid getting hurt in any way... I pushed friends and family and significant others away from me thinking it would protect me... then I met the one that broke through.

Now I'm seeing love as the way he falls asleep and I can't stop watching the rise and fall of his chest as his breathing evens out, the way we just understand and support each other, the need to be tough because he can't sometimes and the way he can be tough for me when I'm weak.

The romantic side of love is easier for me to explain because its easier for me to isolate and observe... family love and friend love is something that is harder to pin down for me though...

No matter what side of love you look at, you'll always find the consistent "one is strong to hold up the other one when they are weak" aspect of things. You learn to put your feelings aside and become a sort of backbone for the one you care about.

Krista - Love is...

Love is...waking up every morning knowing this is my legacy. I may never be famous but the greatest thing I do in this world is raise my son. Love is singing him to sleep every night. Encouraging his dreams, sharing with him my stories about growing up, teaching him right from wrong, and how no matter how bad things seem, better days will come along. Love is remembering he is still learning how to be himself and (attempting to anyway) staying calm when he tests those boundaries. Love is knowing my greatest fears are for his safety rather than my own. Love is watching kids movies at the Saturday matinee and learning all the super heroes names rather than lounging in a bathtub reading some chick lit and then going to see the movie version of it on a Friday night. Love is being so tired and drained yet still putting on the smile when he comes to show me some new trick he's learned. Love is listening to his laughter as he tells yet another silly knock-knock joke. Love is staying up all night and comforting him when he's hurting, or scared, despite the fact that you have to wake up early the next morning and work. Love is teaching this kid to be an awesome person...


Love is also friendship. Friendships that stand the test of time. Through failed relationships and miles and miles of distance. Love is knowing that there might be easier options but realizing that the one that makes you happiest is the difficult choice. Love is companionship. Love is honesty. Love is swallowing your pride (as painful as that is when you're the headstrong one) and apologizing when you are wrong. Love is passion. Love is fun. Love is being content and realizing that the drama and highs and lows are NOT necessary to be fulfilled. Love is knowing that the simple things make you happy. Love is when you don't know how to cook, so you start trying to learn because you know that he would love it if you would, at least on occasion. Love is cleaning up after a group of boys that really should know better :) Love is insanely spending time in really cold weather and snow just to spend time with the one you love when you really should be home on a beach somewhere...(see below)

Love is a gift. One I don't give freely. Love is family. It's healing and comfort. When I'm having a really, really bad day, hearing "I love you" helps ease my troubles. Love is giving of yourself more than you ever imagined. Love is also pain. And hurt and disappointment, but we can't live without it. Love is the thing that keeps you fighting to live each day, and makes you want to be a better person. Love is compromise, but not compromising yourself, which can be too easily confused. Love means opening up yourself and sharing the most vulnerable places knowing it may come back to bite you, but giving yourself the chance to fall.

As I've gotten older, I've realized how some of my initial misconceptions of love had me thinking that love meant never giving up. But now, I see that sometimes giving up is the best thing you can do to prove you love yourself. Because loving you is just as terrifying and necessary as loving another person. Love is life. Having it and giving it makes everything worthwhile. And I hate sounding cheesy or cliche, so I really hope this doesn't come off that way. Love is the best thing on this earth...something not to be taken for granted. And I pray every day to remember this and to be thankful for the love I have and the love I am able to give.

Heather- oh boy, I get to do it ALLLLL over again... :/

I've been a slacker from hell lately, so to all my adoring fans (read: my mom) my bad. I'm trying to get on the ball, which is why I'm sitting in the damn library trying to post three entries before 3:30. I have an hour and a half. Go!

So my weekdays start with me waking up several times in the middle of the night. Then, I finally get up at 5. I get dressed, wash my face, brush my teeth, grab my stuff, and leave. I put on most of my makeup while I'm riding in the car with my mom. I'm at work no later than 8:20 so I can hurry up and clock in and get the hell out of there.

I leave work around 11 and either go drive around for a little bit, or go pick my mom up from work for her lunch break. After that, she goes back to work and I drive around some more. From now on, I'm probably going to hang out at the library until it's time to pick her up again since I have nothing better to do with my time. Lol. So I go get my mom and we drive home.

Once I'm home, I go straight to my room, set my stuff down and take off my awful scrub shirt. I take my bunny, Pancakes, outside for a little bit so we can have mommy-baby cuddle time and so I can put a bow on her! :) I try to keep her out for as long as I can, or until she tries to kill me. Then, I take the bow off if she hasn't already done it herself and put her back in the cage till it's closer to bedtime.

After that, I usually eat dinner and go get Pancakes again to take her outside for more cuddle time while I smoke. Usually, I let her run around on my bed while I watch a movie or read. Then, she goes insane and tries to kill me, so I put her up, go get my dog, Lilly, and put her on my bed since she's way too short to get up there by herself. That's about when it's finally bedtime so I can go to sleep and do it all over again.

Sabrina-The Unexplainable

How would you define love? 

The dictionary defines it as:  a profoundly tender, passionate affection for another person..

But, Other than the dictionary's definition, there isn't a way to define LOVE to it's truest and deepest meaning. 

I'll explain it though as best as I can.

Love is..

..feeling for a person always the same way you have since those 'butterflies' at the beginning. 

..staring at them at random moments just to admire their beauty and perfection.

..knowing that they aren't perfect, but indeed perfect for you.

..knowing they are in love with you as equally as you are in love with them.

..rarely getting in arguments, and when you do you both laugh them off within minutes because they are just so silly and pointless. 

..being there for them no matter what.

..not being able to define love, besides with a dictionary definition, because there is no way that love has just a simple explanation. It's beyond comprehension. 

..knowing you would do anything in the world for that person.

..never having any doubts.

..being able to trust and be trusted.

..something that always remains true.

..friendship and constant affection.

..commitment.

..tackling obstacles together.

..growing together.

..not making the choice to love, since love is not a choice. You can't choose how much or if you love someone.

..wanting to be a better person for them.

..happiness.

..sharing similarities and embracing the differences.

..never being selfish, always wanting to do and give for that person, and them doing the same for you. Sharing.

..unconditional.

..respect.

..soft sweet kisses.

..being able to spend time with one another and do nothing in particular.

..rubbing my aching feet after a long days work.

..the willingness to forgive every mistake, knowing it won't be repeated.

..all or nothing.

..patient.

..strong when we are weak.

..

LOVE is the greatest thing in the world. It's above everything. Love is..LOVE. There is no simple explanation.