Ten Things I Learned in 2006 MEME

1. If you are at a public or family event with a small child and you have an endless supply of extra clothing that will not fit me when you hand your child to me it will pee or poop on me much to your relief because "better me than you" and "oh he was constipated yesterday" both can be cured by Aunt Allie.

2. A small faint pink plus is enough to throw your entire existance into a whirl but if you get your hopes up something horrible will happen so practice your patient game face.

3. I used to believe that your friends bailed you out of jail but your good friends would be the ones sitting beside you saying "well I didn't see that coming" or "it sounded like a great idea". Now I know without a doubt that your friends are the people who know you enough to use you as a reference on a job application and your good friends are the ones who know what kind of ice cream to bring when you pretend like you don't want to cry. Good friends know you just need to cry it out. Good friends let you hang up on them. Good friends are just there.

4. Love is not patient, love is not kind. The bible said it but what it meant to say is "love is pretending to be patient when him completing one more level makes you want to stab yourself in the eye with a stilleto heel and love is kind even when you are thinking about the top 10 ways to kill former friends using the objects in the room which appear harmless". Love is knowing you are wrong when you think you are right. Love is still wanting to kiss morning breath and hug the I-just-raked-smell. Love is the only condition in which the happiness of another is essential for your own. Love is an action & it is a choice.

5. People love people who plan things. People love parties that are well thought out. People love trips with agendas. People love having someone to call when they don't know what course to take. People love dependable. They do not however love any of those things if they aren't part of the plan, can't keep up with the plan or have another plan in mind. So if you're planning something. Plan on staying out of the way.

6. Elope. I know what you're thinking..."but my friends and family will be so DISAPPOINTED". Listen to me... ELOPE! You can't make everyone happy. So make the top 1% happy. For instance yourself and your husband, those people should be happy. Take 10 people go to Vegas get married by Elvis or Marilyn Monroe. Take a vacation. Spend the money on a new house. Just do it. Elope.

7. It is possible to change your entire life in one year. You can go from Pagan to Christian. You can change job positions at work. You can get married. You can get pregnant. You can miscarry. You can lose people you were close to. You can reconnect with the people you've lost. You can find your financial stability. You can lose your grip. You can know someone. You can forget someone. You can find God. You can lose your agenda. You are an incredible person... because God made you in a way that can transform greatly in a short amount of time.

8. Being bored is a choice. I used to scream down the hallway at my grandparents ranch in the summer "grandma I'm bored". She'd yell back "boredom is a choice". I'd say "there is nothing to do". She'd list the chores that could be done. I'd yell "that's no FUN". She'd say "fun is a matter of opinion." I get it now Grandma I really do. Fun is that moment you know the dishes are done, the laundry is up to date, the bills are paid and you can now play air guitar standing on the couch next to a friend.

9. Being married is the 2nd best thing on the planet. (The 1st of course being eternal salvation which rocks!) Having someone to talk to, someone to laugh at, someone to make laugh, someone to cry with, someone to hold, someone who loves your bed head, someone who takes out the trash, someone who loses the remote, someone who steals the covers, someone who lets you steal the good pillows, someone willing to go to the store twice in the same day to keep you from panicing while you're planning an event, someone who wants to be the parent to your children, someone who understands why you're leaving early, someone who never lets you win but always lets you play, someone who teases you, someone who won't make lists but still has them, someone who you will always love. BEST!THING!EVER!!

10. It's just another year. 2006, 2007, 3014 it will just be another year. Another day at work, a weekend with friends, a few trips to someplace to do something with someone and the pictures to show the co-workers and a couple million little things in the middle. It's just another year... and we're ever so thankful we made it through it.