My Freedom Day 12

OK, so I fell off the blogging wagon for a few days - I guess the good news is that I did get back on today! Back to my My Freedom Prompts from the summer that I fell behind on mut I had several people who enjoyed them so I will pick them up here again.

Today's prompt is to share my first job experience. I guess there are two or maybe three jobs that I consider "first" jobs of sorts. Ok maybe actually four - 1. the first job I got paid for - babysitting 2. the first job in a real location of employment - filling in summers at Dr. Opdahl's office (oral surgeon where my Mom worked) 3. first real job that I applied for and got on my own - Kentucky Fried Chicken (my junior year in high school through summer between freshman and sophomore in college) and last but not least 4. My first real job after college using the education I worked for and Mom and Dad paid for - Working at Marion Retirement Center as a full fledged RN.

I guess that was the long answer to a fairly straight forward question but I feel that those job experiences all gave me different things. I got the joy of making my own money at 13 babysitting and had lots of school teachers that lived within a couple of blocks that kept me busy most weekends. I liked going to work with Mom and working in a "real" place of employment - besides I got to see classmates of mine getting teeth pulled and I was involved in one way or another (even saw some of the big tough guys from school cry). The job at Kentucky Fried Chicken brought with it several growing steps. Once I got a job, I was able to take my driver's license test and get my driver's license as I had to have a way to pay my insurance and gas money as that was not Mom and Dad's responsibility (I think that is how they put it). I also got to drive to school on days I worked as I couldn't make it home on the bus and then to work on time. That was a big deal to me at age 16 almost 17. Yes, I was one month shy of my 17th birthday when I got my driver's license - February 2, 1988 - sadly February 2, 1989 brough the sudden tragic death of my Uncle Wally so that day carries good and bad thing sin my mind. Lastly, I had been in school for 16 years total (12 of basic education and 4 of college) and was thrilled to get a job making more money since I had a degree and my RN credentials. Funny how babysitting at a dollar or so an hour brought its own sense of accomplishments as did minimum wage at Dr. Opdahl's office and Kentucky Fried Chicken and then breaking the $10.00/hr mark as an RN. All had their moments of grown and pain but all taught me the value of working for what you have.

Share with me your first job moments! Have a good Monday - we are since it is late start day in beautiful Chelan.

My Freedom - Day 11

Well, after a long hiatus known as summer and vacations, etc - I am back to resume the My Freedom blog prompts. Today's prompt is to tell my readers about my favorite game. That is a tough one for me as I don't play adult games much and I do play kid games a lot. So - I think I will give this answer in two ways -

~ My favorite game right now - the kids are at an age that they LOVE to play games and finally are old enough to understand the concept and most of the rules. Our favorite game as a family is a series of DVD BINGO games. We started with the Disney one and soon added the Nickelodeon one. On a trip to Mt Vernon in late spring, I stopped at the Ross Dress for Less (love that store) and in the toy dept they had a Thomas the Tank Engine DVD BINGO game for $4.99 (you have to know that I paid $20 for each of the other two). How could I pass it up when we all love playing this together and the kids are both in love with trains and Thomas is a popular fellow at our house. The concept is simple - big BINGO cards with a character for each number (number is there too) and little round chips to put on the spaces, a DVD that plays and chooses the numbers and keep track of those selected. A WILD comes up once in a while and it shows a clip of a selected movie. The kids love it and it helps them with letters, numbers and finding the characters. They always strategize about which card to pick and each have their favorite characters that have to be on their chosen card. We have played it with my parents as well and they love it for fun time with the kids too. If you have a preschool to first grade child, I highly recommend this game.

~ My favorite game if you are talking adult games - this is likely to be Scene It! There are several versions of it and I like the Disney and TV versions best I think. DVD based game that tests your knowledge of an array of topics. It is a fun couples game but one we only get to play about once a year. I also enjoy the games on our Wii, especially the Wii Fit games. What a workout. The Wii games are the ones I play more often.

If you have a fun game for adults or for young children that you enjoy, please leave me a comment and share your favorites.

Have a great day and I will post tomorrow on My Freedom about My First Job Experience!

My Freedom - Day 10

OK, actually it is day 11 but we only get prompts 5 days a week so it is prompt 10 written on day 11. Today's prompt is to set a word goal and hen type a blog entry and see how I do in hitting the goal - exactly on, over or under, so here goes - I will set a reasonable goal of 150 words!

Well, let's begin with why I am blogging a day late. We began our week long camping trip yesterday. We left home in Chelan about 10 am yesterday (right on schedule I might add) and headed to Liberty Lake, WA (just east of Spokane & home to my idol - Stacy Julian http://www.stacysbigpicture.typepad.com). We are camping at the KOA her until next Saturday the 26th. Megan and her crew will be joining us today. We plan to take in Silverwood/Boulder Beach for two days, Cat Tales for one day, Spokane's Riverfront Park for one day, Rockin B Ranch for dinner show one night and lots of relaxation and swimming fit in too! We try to do this the last full week of July every year. We arrived right on schedule at 3 pm and got camp set up. Kids played on playground and then at play area at the local McDonald's and then swam for about 1 hour before crashing in bed about 8 pm. They were up bright and early this morning (6:30 am) waiting for Sissy Megan and family to arrive. I will likely post about My Freedom prompts during the time we are gone as well as about our trip and pics from the fun.

OK - for anyone who knows me there is no surprise that I went over my goal. I wrote 208 words for an overage of 58 words. Now the challenge to you - any comments you make, try to hit exactly 20 words without counting ahead of time and see how you do!!

My Freedom - Day 9

Good morning! Yess I am ahead of the game this morning and posting prior to 9 am!! That doesn't mean I am organized, rather I have a busy schedule today so am prioritizing to do this in the early morning rather than not at all!!

Today's prompt is "Things that inspire us are often linked to what we label as quirks in our personalities: things we like that others seem to dismiss. What quirk (in your personality) could you share with your readers to see if they really dismiss it or if it's something you have in common?"

Oh boy - I am a very visual person so things that inspire me tend to be things I can see or touch. I am a definite "scraplift" addict as I love to make my sketch cards from magazine or websites for reference during scrapping. I may not know exactly how to scrap a particular photo or photos but whip out my sketch cards box or an idea/layout book (which I carry in a DJs Scrappin Retreat book bag) and I am inspired to make the fun layouts I enjoy making. I RARELY design a layout from start to finish without one of these resources at hand.

Is this something you share in common or do you dismiss it as no source of inspiration for you?

Please share your inspiration quirk with me in your comments!

My Freedom - Day 8

I bet there were some of you who think I wasn't going to make it to post today! Never fail - I am here!

Today's blog prompt is share with readers one thing you have accomplished and one thing you hope to accomplish.

Accomplishment certainly has to be the successful adoption of my two kiddos! Chase's adoption was a very long trial with many challenges along the way but we did finally get to bring him to his forever home the day after Thanksgiving 2003! Mackenzie's adoption was a very fast very unexpected turn of events but one we cannpt imagine life without!

My Aspiration is to lose the pounds I have set as my goal in a current biggest loser club by Christmas of this year. My goal is 23 lbs and I am 3 lbas closer as of today. It is taking a lot of exercise and changes to my eating and grazing habits. I will keep you posted on my progress!!

Till tomorrow may your accomplishments bring you joy and your aspirations bring you challenges to keep life interesting!

My Freedom - Day 7

Well, in comparison, today's blog prompt is so much easier and quicker than the past 6 very thought-provoking ones. Today's prompt is to share a list of link with you for websites that inspire me most so here goes:

www.neighborjanepayne.com - Jane is such an inspiration and a wonderwoman in my book!

www.flickr.com - with the type of a word, this site can take me to anywhere I want to be

www.shimelle.com - it is so neat to follow the life of an American in England

www.nationalgeographic.com - this site can put it all in perspective

www.stacysbigpicture.com - she reminds me that even busy Mom's can do it all

www.biblegateway.com - allows me to focus on my faith

I think that is a pretty good list of what I frequent. There are others if I am on a purposeful mission for something specific but in general this list is my favorites.

Till tomorrow - look for inspiration in the world around you! If you have inspriational sites you love that I have missed, please comment and share them!

My Freedom - Day 6

Today's blog prompt reads - "Share an old photo of yourself and a current photo of yourself with your blog readers. Tell them a little something that has changed and a little that had stayed the same."

Michelle - circa 1972 1st birthday

Michelle - circa February 2008 - cruise to Caribbean

OK, believe it or not the pictures were the easy part. Actually the only hard part of the pictures was dating the first one, but one quick call to Mom helped identify the year and location of that one (her words were "first birthday at the house on the hill").

Something that has changed - RESPONSIBILITIES!! Some days my little ones ask, when are we going to be big and get to be the boss and go to work and stuff, little do they know that when they are big and "stuff" they will have times, as do I, when they wish for the days of leisure and minimal responsibilities. Life changes so much between the carefree days of childhood and the responsibilities and balancing of priorities of adulthood. Instead of being the child, I am charged with the responsibility to raise my children "in the nurture and admonition of the Lord". What as awesome responsibility that is especially in the world today. I know that my kids, as I did as a child, question my direction and rules but most days it seems so much less daunting a task to question those rules than to have the fragile lives of two children to raise with the rules as well as living my life as God would have me to live it.

Something that has stayed the same - NAIVETE'! As all children begin very naive to the ways of the world, in a lot of ways I find myself, as does my husband, to remain a bit naive at times. Sometimes that naivete' is a nice hiding place from the world and other times it makes me feel a bit foolish and stupid. I do feel it is nice at times to remain naive about some of the evils of the world but I also realize the naivete' at my age can lead to hurt, disappointment and danger. How nice it would be to live in a world as pure and simple as a child perceives it but we know so much better.

Till tomorrow and another installment of My Freedom! Enjoy the day and take time to enjoy the simple parts of life and forget responsibilities if only for a few moments!

My Freedom - Day 5

Well, let me begin with the fact that I am so happy to have actually made it on my quest to be consistent with these blog prompts Monday-Friday. Yippee!!

Today's Blog prompt is - "How do you prefer the pace of life? Do you wish things would spped up or slow down?"

What an interesting prompt and once again thought-provoking. I am once again dealing with a dicotomy in my mind as what I like and what I set myself up for in life are two different things. I certainly don't like to be bored and have nothing to do, but I also like things to be slow enough to fit in some spontaneous fun. I do live by a calendar as life at my house is either really busy or really not busy. When the calendar looks not busy, I tend to feel a void and then fill that void up, thus creating for myself a lot of busy times with no down time. I am someone who needs my sleep (not 10 - 12 hours) of at least 6 hours uninterrupted to keep up with life. Lack of that sleep usually results in migraines or tearful melancholy moods, or even both! In my attempts to stay busy (although that woudl not be my choice, rather I feel obligated to be that way), I can submarine myself and not enjoy the things going on around my while I am too busy. I can't say that I prefer particularly slow paced life but I don't prefer being too busy for my home and family. So I guess the answer is that I woul most days prefer it slow down but I and only I am in control of that most of the time!

We are also supposed to illustrate our preference - the best way I know to do that is actually so appropriate for this week. My dearest friend Jill and I have been planning for several months (yes I said months) to clean and organize my scrap room. I am blessed with a home that had a large area for my hobbies but it was a MESS!! I did not even take before pictures as I was too embarassed. Life has been so busy for Jill and I that it took till this week to do this project we began talking and planning for in April. The MESS I referred to was also caused by the fast pace of life around here. I have made decisions about the pace of my life that kept me from keeping it organized so the door usually got opened and things thrown it. You couldn't even walk through the room on Monday morning when we started. Not only that but if I needed or wanted to scrap it was nearly impossible to find what I needed to do it. (No Jane I am not always as organized as the front I put on at retreats) However, we were successful at our mission this week, Jill & I. We spent 20+ hours in three days on the room and it is so nice to know where things are and have a useable space!! Thanks so much Jill!! I went down there last night to do my 2 page layout for My Freedom's prompt yesterday regarding "Time" (are you seeing a theme here) and was able to find coordinating patterned paper, match it to cardstock, found matching letters and embellishments and completed the 2 page layout (no journaling was to be done till today's prompt) in less than 1 hour and that included cleaning up after myself at the end and changing movies for Mackenzie halfway through!! What a great feeling to have taken the "time" to do that project!! Here are a few pictures of the completed room (we still have a few things to find homes for, but the organizing is done).

My Workspace/Desk

TV corner for good chick flicks!

Paper shelves and storage

(white towers have wood stamps in them by theme)

Work Table

Cricut Expression with be set up here and large paper cutter

Have a nice weekend everyone!

My Freedom - Day 4

OK - here is today's prompt - "Have you ever been inspired by the words of a poem? Share the poem with your blog readers (you) and tell them how you came to value its words.

Here is the poem - I first read it in High School back in the late 1980s. I will let you read it - though most have read it before - then to follow I will tell how I came to value it.

The Road Not Taken
Robert Frost (1874–1963).

TWO roads diverged in a yellow wood,

And sorry I could not travel both

And be one traveler, long I stood

And looked down one as far as I could

To where it bent in the undergrowth;


Then took the other, as just as fair,

And having perhaps the better claim,

Because it was grassy and wanted wear;

Though as for that the passing there

Had worn them really about the same,


And both that morning equally lay

In leaves no step had trodden black.

Oh, I kept the first for another day!

Yet knowing how way leads on to way,

I doubted if I should ever come back.


I shall be telling this with a sigh

Somewhere ages and ages hence:

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—

I took the one less traveled by,

And that has made all the difference.

My value to this poem is that I first read it at a difficult time of a teenager's life. I was in high school and was smart and taking harder college prep classes with a desire for higher education. I was not an athlete, nor was I the pretty one or flirty one. Rather, I was more into books and had responsibilities at home and a job in the later parts of high school. I was also a Christian teenager in school of many different morales and ethics. It was difficult to always make the "right" choice as most often it came with ridicule and teasing or plain ignorance from classmates and sometimes even close friends. I was commited to my virginity till marriage and that was unpopular as well. Face it, high school places many strains on kids that begin their decision-making processes for the rest of their lives so good decisions make life down the road much easier but the good decision at the time is not always popular or accepted. This poem encouraged me to take the "road not taken" by the masses and be proud of my decision. Did I always make the right decisions, no but who does. I kept this poem in my notebooks throughout high school and even college - few even know this fact - as constant reminder of my commitment to making good decisions even when they were not the popular decisions.

Boy, this was a thought provoking prompt but I had no problem knowing which poem to reference.

Till tomorrow my friends.

My Freedom - Day 3

What's In Your Suitcase? This is the blog prompt today. I will list a few of my necessities for travel and readers can add theirs in comments or blog it themselves.

A good pair of shoes for walking

My camera

My ipod

My Mary Kay Travel cosmetic bag

Sunscreen

A good book - this is what I am reading currently and love it!!

A book of Sudoku puzzles

My Archos Video player

Of course, clothes appropriate for the location but the above items are must haves for my travel - share your must haves and maybe we have similar lists or maybe we learn from one another!!

See you tomorrow!!

My Freedom - Day 2

Well, today's blog prompt is "If you could travel in time for just one day, where would you go and what would you do?". I have thought about this ALL day while my dearest friend and I have been cleaning and organizing my scrap room - more to come on that later. I found it difficult to narrow this down as I would love to go back to the time of creation in the Garden of Eden and see the world before sin entered into it, but there are other historical times that I would like to see as well. Throughout the day, I have vascilated a lot through the different options for this time travel and I finally decided to go with my first and constant instinct and that was to go to the Beginning and see the Garden of Eden on day 7 when God rested after creating such a marvelous world. I think that seeing this would be as close as I can come on earth to getting a glimpse of heaven to come. I really don't have nor can I get a picture that is anywhere close to this so I will leave it to your minds as in mine it is so marvelous!!

Enjoy the day and I made it to day 2 with keeping up with the posts - so see you tomorrow!

My Freedom Day 1 - Time & Travel

Today is the first day of an online class at http://www.shimelle.com/ called My Freedom. Each week for 5 weeks we get daily prompts Monday through Friday beginning with photos on Monday, storytelling (AKA journaling) mid-week and 2 page layout construction on Friday. It is a book made to discover yourself and to improve your storytelling from the who, what and where to the story behind the photos and what makes them important to you.

I am very excited about this class and as an added bonus - there is a Daily Blog Prompt so I "should" be able to keep up with daily blog posts (Monday - Friday) for the next 5 weeks and maybe that will help me to get in focus for daily blogging all of the time.

Today's class starts with topics of Time & Travel. We are taking pictures that represent both to us - so my picture for the blog represents time and my plan to "Make Time for My Freedom". Isn't it a beautiful clock - it was my birthday present from Dave & the kids - it plays a song every hour and is animated so this is my favorite "timepiece" as it was given to me with love!