Well, well, well. Do I have some stories to tell about Christmas 2005! It was a wild and crazy time. :) Actually, it WILL go down for the record books. Here's how it went...

Thursday, December 22nd...

I left Tulsa and rolled into KC around 3:30 PM, met up with my friend, Mike, and spent the afternoon with him (and a couple of friends who dropped in and out). Then, that evening we met up with a group of his friends for dinner and drinks at the Country Club Plaza. The food and company was all excellent (as to be expected). Mike was kind enough to give me a cheese serving tray for Christmas... most people have to be getting married to get such a gift! (Btw... Mike's in a great deal of trouble, too, because we had agreed NOT to get each other gifts... so I thought. Actually... that probably just means that I'M the one in trouble!!!)

I arrived home at my parents somewhere after midnight. Mom & Dad were in bed, but I let them know I was home.

Friday, December 23rd...

I got up somewhere around 8:30 AM and was informed by my Mom that if I wanted to go shopping with her and my sister (I did), I needed to be ready by 9 AM. So, I hurried and got ready and spent the vast majority of the day shopping. I bought very little, because I already had my Christmas shopping done (save the gift for Mike!). But, I had a very enjoyable day with Mom, Chelle and baby Natalie. (Yes, I got to tend to the baby!)

We arrived home fairly late in the afternoon and made preparations to head to Michelle & John's house for the evening's festivities. (The entire family was to congregate there for "Christmas dinner," spending the night and then opening gifts the next morning.) Said festivities took place and we eventually all settled in for the night. I slept in a twin bed in the spare bedroom with my niece, Erin, on a pallet on the floor.

Christmas Eve - Saturday, December 24th...

Baby Natalie started fussing about 5:45 AM, at which time Erin decided to crawl in bed with me. I was feeling a bit funny... sort of nauseous. I laid there a few moments but then got up to check on Chelle and the baby. I saw with her in the living room as she fed the baby. My nausea continued until the point I broke my fifteen year non-vomitting streak. I spent some quality time hugging the toilet that day. In fact, we had to open Christmas presents in between hugging sessions. So, the day was passed by 1) hugging said toilet, 2) sleeping, 3) opening gifts and 4) lamenting the fact I couldn't share in the holiday treats being enjoyed by my family.

That night, circa 8:30 or 9 PM, we made the decision to try and make the treck back to my parents' house. (I could continue my recovery from a full-sized bed that way.) I was feeling much improved and had even attempted some crackers and 7-UP... even a bit of chicken noodle soup. My Mom was kind enough to drive me. Half way through the 15-minute drive, I asked her to stop the car. I started thinking the trip wasn't a very good idea. Not only had the vibrations made me a bit queasy, but I was getting very light-headed. Mom pulled the car over, I fumbled around to get the door opened and I imagined piling out of the car and laying spread-eagle on the cold ground, in the cold night air. Instead, I laid out across the seat... and leaned back onto my Mom's shoulder. She later said I was sweating profusely. I'm not sure I really remembered everything that happened there, other than I leaned out of the car to cool down in the night air. I guess it's what I needed, because I was eventually recovered enough to finish the trip.

Christmas Day - Sunday, December 25th...

First of all, I should back up and explain that my parents had both had this strange "stomach virus" earlier in the week before I came home. So, there were certainly questions as to the contagiousness of the illness. I opted not to go to church, but since I felt better, I got ready to go over to my Aunt's house for the "big family" Christmas get-together. Our family convened after church at Mom & Dad's and we debated as to sanity of attending the big group function given our history of and potential future illness. We finally called and gave them a warning, but our presence was nevertheless requested. So, we all piled into two cars and headed for my Aunt Linda's house. By "all," I mean all of us except for my brother-in-law, John. He was already feeling a big uneasy, so he headed home. Good for him he did... he did a fair amount of toilet-hugging at home. My sister was not as fortunate. She did her toilet-hugging at my Aunt Linda's house. I figured we'd be the first of the family to leave, but we actually ended up being the last of the crew to leave. We toted my sister home, and she nearly made it; however, instead of running into the house to do her duty, she ran to the back of the driveway and delivered the last of her Christmas lunch.

At that point, we had two down - Chelle at Mom & Dad's house and John at his. Since we wanted to be one big happy, puking family. Dad went to fetch John so we could tend to them and the baby (who fortunately did not get sick) all in one location.

From Linda's house, David, Sarah and Erin all headed back to their house to meet Sarah's sister, Desiree. She arrived in town about 6 PM and had a plane flight early the next morning out of KCI. (They were making preparations to leave for the airport around 3:45 AM.) Mom assured them to call us if they were sick and needed any assistance with those plans.

Early, early Monday morning, December 26th...

Baby Natalie started fussing around about 2:45 AM. Since her crib was right next to my bed, I got up and tried to lull her back to sleep. No luck. Mom was sleeping on the couch (displaced by the sick couple), so I woke her to prepare a bottle (as I had been instructed before going to bed). Mom warmed up the bottle and was simultaneously startled by a ringing phone. Yup... you guessed it. David, Sarah and Erin were all sick. My Dad was shortly out of bed and out the door to go pick up Desiree and get her to the airport (afterwards returning to the other infected home to care for the suffering inhabitants). By that time, everyone was roused. Chelle, John, Mom, me and the baby all sat around the living room... agreeing it was an odd time for "family time." But, it was a rather humorous time marveling at the turn of events.

After catching a few more winks (until nearly 11 AM), we visited a bit more... talking of how memorable this Christmas would be, though maybe not for the reasons we had hoped. :)

I left for Tulsa a couple of short hours later.

What I learned...

If I'm going to be sick like that, I'd rather be sick around my family than anyone else. They love me and accept me... REGARDLESS. They even clean up after me (thanks, Chelle)! Though I'm sure we'd all have preferred NOT to be sick, it was neat that we could all take turns taking care of each other... moral support, making chicken noodle soup, holding someone's hair back, rides to the airport, etc. I have a very special family. And that was the best gift of all this Christmas!!

First of all....

I'd like to welcome my friend, Mike, to the world of blogging. It's a grand adventure, and I know you'll love it!

Christmas Parties, etc.

Well... 'tis the season. :)

Last Thursday was our small group's Christmas party. We had a lovely time - I think 17 people. We did what we normally do... visit and eat. We had a lot of good holiday snacks, and everyone seemed to enjoy standing around and chatting. But, we took some time to gather around and read through the Christmas story (Luke 2:1-20) and reflect on the true meaning of Christmas - the gift our Heavenly Father gave us in Jesus Christ his son! Then we sang some Christmas carols and shared in a special time of prayer. Other activities included an ornament exchange and more visiting/eating. Later in the evening, some of us gathered around the guitar and piano to sing some of our favorite hymns and praise songs. It was a very enjoyable evening. Those folks are so good for me.

Last night was our company Christmas party - quite a far cry from the small group party. :) A friend of mine was gracious enough to accompany me, and we had a good time. There were lots of food/beverages, interesting conversation and gifts exchanged. We had a "dirty Santa" gift exchange, where we were supposed to bring a "round" gift. I received the best number - #1. But, I was plenty happy with my original gift - ROUND Tortilla chips and salsa. Fortunately it was never stolen. All-in-all, it was an enjoyable evening as well. Though I don't have much in common with my co-workers, they're an entertaining lot.

So, that brings you somewhat up to date. I have nearly all of my Christmas shopping. What's ironic is that the gift I have left to get is the person's name who I was assigned for our family gift exchange. (Yes, that's YOU, Dad!) He can be somewhat challenging to buy for. I have part of his gift, but I need to get it finished up and wrapped. I think everything else is covered. So, my Christmas tree is looking perfectly happy with a small multitude of gifts under it.

Can't wait to see everyone up in KC! I'll be up there shortly!

Upon request... 

Sole Survivor

Well... she did it! Danielle "Dani" Boatright... Sole Survivor (Survivor Guatemala), winner of $1,000,000. I can't believe it really. I know I'm silly, but I had to dig out a picture to show my Tulsa friends - It's a picture of me and Danielle from my 13th birthday party. Very funny... and I'd post it here, but it's a rather humiliating picture of myself. :)

But... congratulations, Danielle! We've enjoyed watching and rooting for you!

You're Beautiful

I've found a new song I like - James Blunt's "You're Beautiful." It's kind of a depressing sort of song, but I'm somehow attracted to it. I was playing it here on the computer, but for some reason, I guess I can't blog and listen to it at the same time. Maybe I'll try it again now that I have this window up...

Ah, here we go. I have it playing now. I'm disappointed to see that it's been approximately six weeks since my last blog. No... I didn't forget my blog site, though I haven't thought much about blogging lately. I'd like to say that's because my life has been full of excitement lately. Unfortunately, I don't think that's the case. However, we are deep into the holiday season now, so I'll blame some of it on that. I have my Christmas shopping started... most of the "little things" bought, though I still have some of the bigger gifts left to buy.

I dunno... I think I'm getting kind of lazy lately. I can't seem to get myself in bed at a decent time, which means I'm not getting up very early in the mornings, which means I'm not working out. I have plans in my head to change that, but so far it hasn't happened. The Survivor Guatemala finale is tomorrow night. I think after that I may shut my TV down for awhile. In fact, it almost sounds good to me to take down the entire entertainment center... force myself to be more creative with my time. But, speaking of the Survivor finale - my classmate from high school has made it to the final four, so that should make the finale very interesting. Only sad part is that it airs during church tomorrow night. I think I'll just miss the first hour but high-tail it home to catch the 2nd hour of the finale. Maybe I can drag a couple of people over for an impromptu watch party.

Well, it's nearly 2 AM. I suppose I should force myself to crawl in bed. I suppose the two cups of coffee I had after 9 PM didn't help. Ah... caffeine... gotta love it!

Have a good night, world.

Don't Wait...

I was just reminded of this verse…

Ecclesiastes 11:4 (NIV) - "Whoever watches the wind will not plant; whoever looks at the clouds will not reap."

In other words… "If you wait until the wind and the weather are just right, you will never plant anything and never harvest anything."

It's a nice reminder… we can sit around and wait until conditions are just perfect before we do anything… or we can step out, make plans, take risks and watch God produce the results.

That's pretty cool.

~Krista

Principles

"I will keep the law given by God; sanctioned by man. I will hold to the principles received by me when I was sane, and not mad - as I am now. Laws and principles are not for the times when there is no temptation: they are for such moments as this when body and soul rise in mutiny against their rigour; stringent are they; inviolate they shall be. If at my individual convenience I might break them, what would be their worth? They have a worth - so I have always believed; and if I cannot believe it now, it is because I am insane - quite insane: with my veins running fire, and my heart beating faster than I can count its throbs. Preconceived opinions, foregone determinations, are all I have at this hour to stand by: there I plant my foot."

Charlotte Bronte, in "Jane Eyre"

Reason

"I can live alone, if self respect and circumstances require me so to do. I need not sell my soul to buy bliss. I have an inward treausre, born with me, which can keep me alive if all extraneous delights shoud be withheld; or offered only at a price I cannot afford to give. Reason sits firm and holds the reins, and she will not let the feelings burst away and hurry her to wild chasms. The passons may rage furiously, like true heathens, as they are; and the desires may imagine all sorts of vain things: but judgment shall still have the last word in every argument, and the casting vote in every decision. Strong wind, earthquake-shock, and fire may pass by: but I shall follow the guiding of that still small voice which interprets the dictates of conscience.'"

Charlotte Bronte, in "Jane Eyre"

The necklace

I received this forward today and thought it was worth archiving. :)

The cheerful little girl with bouncy golden curls was almost five. Waiting with her mother at the checkout stand, she saw them, a circle of glistening white pearls in a pink foil box.
"Oh mommy please, Mommy. Can I have them? Please, Mommy, please?"
Quickly the mother checked the back of the little foil box and then looked back into the pleading blue eyes of her little girl's upturned face. "A dollar ninety-five. That's almost $2.00. If you really want them, I'll think of some extra chores for you and in no time you can save enough money to buy them for yourself. Your birthday's only a week away and you might get another crisp dollar bill from Grandma."

As soon as Jenny got home, she emptied her penny bank and counted out 17 pennies. After dinner, she did more than her share of chores and she went to the neighbor and asked Mrs. McJames if she could pick dandelions for ten cents. On her birthday, Grandma did give her another new dollar bill and at last she had enough money to buy the necklace.
Jenny loved her pearls. They made her feel dressed up and grown up. She wore them everywhere, Sunday school, kindergarten, even to bed. The only time she took them off was when she went swimming or had a bubble bath. Mother said if they got wet, they might turn her neck green.

Jenny had a very loving daddy and every night when she was ready for bed, he would stop whatever he was doing and come upstairs to read her a story. One night as he finished the story, he asked Jenny, "Do you love me?"

"Oh yes, daddy. You know that I love you."

"Then give me your pearls."

"Oh, daddy, not my pearls. But you can have Princess, the white horse from my collection, the one with the pink tail. Remember, daddy? The one you gave me. She's my very favorite."

"That's okay, Honey, daddy loves you. Good night." And he brushed her cheek with a kiss.

About a week later, after the story time, Jenny's daddy asked again, "Do you love me?"

"Daddy, you know I love you."

"Then give me your pearls."

"Oh Daddy, not my pearls. But you can have my baby doll. The brand new one I got for my birthday. She is beautiful and you can have the yellow blanket that matches her sleeper."
"That's okay. Sleep well. God bless you, little one. Daddy loves you."
And as always, he brushed her cheek with a gentle kiss.

A few nights later when her daddy came in, Jenny was sitting on her bed with her legs crossed Indian style. As he came close, he noticed her chin was trembling and one silent tear rolled down her cheek.

"What is it, Jenny? What's the matter?"

Jenny didn't say anything but lifted her little hand up to her daddy. And when she opened it, there was her little pearl necklace. With a little quiver, she finally said, "Here, daddy; this is for you."

With tears gathering in his own eyes, Jenny's daddy reached out with one hand to take the dime store necklace, and with the other hand he reached into his pocket and pulled out a blue velvet case with a strand of genuine pearls and gave them to Jenny.

He had them all the time. He was just waiting for her to give up the dime-store stuff so he could give her the genuine treasure.

So it is, with our Heavenly Father. He is waiting for us to give up the cheap things in our lives so that he can give us beautiful treasures. Isn't God good? Are you holding onto things that God wants you to let go of? Are you holding on to harmful or unnecessary partners, relationships, habits and activities that you have come so attached to that it seems impossible to let go?

Sometimes it is so hard to see what is in the other hand but do believe this one thing
God will never take away something without giving you something better in its place.

Tranquility is Overrated

"It is in vain to say human beings ought to be satisfied with tranquillity: they must have action; and they will make it if they cannot find it."

-Charlotte Bronte, from "Jane Eyre"

Well... at least I know I'm not in a coma!

I completely smashed my finger on Wednesday night. Somehow I got it caught under the edge of my chair at dinner. The padded portion of the seat had come loose from the metal chair frame at the right front corner. So, as I was sitting down, and scooting my chair in, somehow my finger got in between the "padded" portion and the frame. It probably wouldn't have been near as bad if I hadn't been in the process of sitting down. I wasn't expecting it, so I think I wasn't sure what had happened... just that my finger was in incredible pain. It happened so fast, and yet it seemed it took forever for me to realize I had to stand up to get my finger out. Talk about pain! I honestly don’t remember the last time I was in pain like that. Surely I’ve been in more pain than that, but honestly… that could be about the worst (physical) pain I’ve ever had. I was just sitting there a few minutes not talking, because I didn’t think I could talk… particularly without crying. Then finally I tried to squeeze out a few words. I was slowly regaining my composure until someone asked how I was. Then I just pretty much lost it. Tears started streaming down my face. That continued for several minutes. Finally the throbbing dulled enough for me to continue on fairly normally.

I have a nice little bruise spot showing through my fingernail. A friend of mine has kindly suggested that the nail will probably fall off. :( I'm hoping that's not the case, as I don't think the squishing had any direct impact on the nail bed. But, I suppose only time will tell.

I did talk with a doctor-friend of mine today. She said that one of the tests to determine whether a patient is in a coma is to take a pin (pen?) and add a good deal of pressure to the fingernail (due to the fact it's such an intense pain). So... at least I'm thankful to know I'm not in a coma.

Frozen Grapes

They are my new favorite delicacy. :) I hadn't really ever thought about it, but a lady in the grocery line recently noticed that I was buying grapes and asked if I ever freeze them. So, I now bring them home, wash them and throw them into an old plastic ice cream container. It seems to meet a need... good healthy snack, refreshing, etc.

They come with my highest recommendation.

Blog Spam

I've been annoyed lately with the spam comments I've had on my blog. It's somewhat a challenge keeping up with them. But, I just discovered an option under my settings that turns on a "word verification." It asks someone leaving a comment to verify a word. This stops the spam and annoys any friend who wishes to leave a good-hearted comment.

So... friends.... please let me know if the word verification is so burdensome as to cause you to stop making comments. I would rather delete a thousand useless spam comments than miss one sarcastic comment from you. :)

Thanks!

My first time

Well... I ran my first 5K this past Saturday. I knew I could run the distance, but I was still a bit nervous about it. A friend of mine had talked about running but decided not to. So, I was half relieved and half nervous that no one would be running with me. I was a bit disappointed in that I stopped and walked part of the race. I attribute that to two things...

1) The course was very, very flat. Without the variation of inclinations, my left shin was experiencing a good deal of pain.

2) There was a 10K race as well, so I kept seeing the 10K markers... thinking I was much further along in the race than I really was. So, when I thought I was nearly done and saw the 2K marker, I was fairly overwhelmed.

But, I did finish the race, and I finished under the time I expected (barely). I won't post that here, though. Maybe when I improve my time significantly I'll start publicizing that information. I should mention... it will do you no good to look for the results. I actually paid for someone else's registration. So, I ran under a pseudonym. And if that's not enough, for some reason, even the pseudonym didn't make it into the race results. :)

True Love

I think the sign of true love will be when someone spends his hard-earned cash to play ridiculous games at the fair in order to win an unusually oversized stuffed animal for me.

A New Direction

Ah... at last... Fall is upon us!! The wind slowly stopped blowing from the south and started blowing from the north. It's brought some long-awaited cooler weather. It's supposed to get down to 49-degrees tonight, with only a high of 70-degrees tomorrow. Whoo-hoo!! I arrived home this evening after work and opened up several windows so as to have a nice breeze blowing through the house. It provided a nice change. I've also turned my A/C off... The electric company probably won't be happy, but I'm ecstatic!

So, welcome to Fall... another good reason to write a poem. I may have to do that later, though. It's past my bedtime.

G'night, y'all.

Weekend w/ Nat, et al.

I had a pretty busy weekend - went up to KC to spend a bit of time with my family. We had a family baby shower for Natalie on Saturday and her baby dedication at church on Sunday. The trip was way too short, but I was happy to be there. I would typically stay with my parents, but they had other company (namely my Grandma, Aunt Janelle and Uncle Eddie). So, instead, I stayed at Michelle's and John's AND NATALIE'S!!! So, I got some great quality time with the baby. I didn't even mind the occasional burping (Nat seems to love spitting up on her Aunt Krista!) and diaper changing. She's a real cutie, so somehow the rest doesn't bother me.

But, hats off to Michelle and John... and all parents for that fact. Parenting is not even comparable to a full-time job. It never ends...

Anyway, I've included a pic below so that you can get a small glimpse at Natalie's cuteness.

Nat 

Poems about Pancakes... Banana Pancakes

The following poems are dedicated to all of the banana pancakes in La Jolla, California...

Cove Cakes

Come to me, my darling pancakes -

Onto my fork and into my mouth!

Verify your status among all

Edible delights.

Cause my tastebuds to explode in jubilation,

And sing your praises in all restaurants, so everyone may

Know of your succulence and

Elevate your name on menus everywhere, thus

Securing your place on breakfast plates, both now and forever.

Banana Pancakes

As the first morning light pours into the room,

I feel a faint breeze across my cheek

as it makes its way in from the salty sea.

A seagull, acting as my own personal rooster,

wakes me from a peaceful slumber.

Oh what a day! A perfect day, I'd say!

After pulling on my faded jeans and getting dressed,

my feet take me instinctively to a quaint cottage -

the quintessential place for a leisure-filled day like today.

The menu begs for my attention, overwhelming me with possibilities -

a million varieties of eggs alone!

But, there's really only one choice for me - banana pancakes!

I KNOW I just had them yesterday,

but I'm helpless to resist their sweet and powerful invitation.

The pancakes swim through my senses - not just my tastebuds.

I know understand the woman behind me taking pictures of her breakfast.

How long can this last, you ask? Not long enough.

Before I know it, my bare plate stares me in the face,

asking me where my beloved pancakes have gone.

But, never fear! There's always tomorrow morning!