Day 27 A problem you have had

I am not going to lie. I had a problem remembering to write this blog yesterday! Ha ha!

Seriously, I do have problems. Some are minor and some border on major but nothing that cannot be overcome. One of my biggest problems is that I am a perfectionist. I am not a perfectionist in every way just in some. For example, my house is NEVER 100% clean. It is usually tidy but not wiped down with Clorox. I can handle having a little dust here and there. But I am a perfectionist in things that I put my mind to accomplish. I am a perfectionist at my job. I want to do my job to the best of my abilities. I go "all out" at work. You know I take that back. I think I am not necessarily a perfectionist but a first try perfectionist. I like to do things really well the first time. I try very hard to make everything perfect so that I don't have to do it again. I don't think there is a word for that. Is that a problem? It is if you work in an instrument repair shop and the tools and instruments you are working with don't cooperate with you and you have to try a repair multiple times. I think that sentence was also a problem. I also think it is a problem that I am rambling so I'm done for now.

Have a great evening and thanks for reading!

As a side note, I have to put my 30 day challenge on hold for a few days because I will be away from the computer. I promise to return and finish the challenge. Thanks for reading!!

Day 26- What kind of person attracts you?

I am looking at what attracts me. He is sitting right here next to me on the couch. He is loving, kind, honest, smart, funny, tall, handsome, strong, loyal, and he's also my hubby!

Have a great evening and thanks for reading!

Day 25- Someone who fascinates you and why

I have been thinking about this topic for awhile. I can't think of anyone that really fascinates me. Seriously. I think I need more time to think about it. The best I could come up with was Jessica Simpson and I really don't know why she fascinates me. There is just something about her. I realize that is a lame-o answer so I promise to consider my answer and get back with you later.

Have a great evening and thanks for reading!

Day 24- Your favorite movie and what it's about.

My favorite movie is kind of a hard thing to pin down. I have several favorites. There are movies that have great special effects. Movies that have a great story line. Movies that draw you in to their magical tales. Then there are movies that live with you for a long time after you have seen them. Those, to me, are the best. The first movie that really stayed with me was "Top Gun". I know it doesn't seem to be the greatest movie of all time but I liked it and I was little. The next movie that was in the "great" category was "Steel Magnolias". What can I say? I am a Georgia girl after all and Julia is from the ATL! Then there was "Forrest Gump". I was so moved by this movie that I couldn't move from the theater. And around the same time is the movie that I will watch for the rest of my life, "Sense and Sensibility". It is a beautiful tale and I love it! There are others that I will always turn to as favorites: "A League of Their Own", "Sleepless in Seattle", "Groundhog Day", "Harry Potter", "Lord of the Rings", and I am sure I am forgetting some. But if I had to pick just one, I would say "Sense and Sensibility". Here is a summary from wikipedia:

The story is about Elinor and Marianne, two daughters of Mr Dashwood by his second wife. They have a younger sister, Margaret, and an older half-brother named John. When their father dies, the family estate passes to John, and the Dashwood women are left in reduced circumstances. The novel follows the Dashwood sisters to their new home, a cottage on a distant relative's property, where they experience both romance and heartbreak. The contrast between the sisters' characters is eventually resolved as they each find love and lasting happiness. Through the events in the novel, Elinor and Marianne encounter the sense and sensibility of life and love.

You should watch it and see how hot Alan Rickman was before he was Snape.

Have a blessed evening and thanks for reading my blog!

Day 23- Give pictures of five guys who are famous who you think are attractive

Five famous guys that are too cute for words:

1. Harry Connick Jr.
2. Hugh Jackman
3. Orlando Bloom
4. Eric Bana
5. Eric Dane

YUM!

Have a blessed evening and thanks for reading!

Day 22 How have you changed in the last two years?

I have learned to eat healthier in the last two years. I made a conscience effort to search out healthy recipes and read about foods that are nutritious for my body. This change in my diet has been a slow process over the last 5 years, really. I think it was a decision that I made after my dad passed away. He never ate healthy a day in his life and he died at 58 (not that he died from his eating habits). I wanted to live long enough to see my children grow up and play with my grandchildren. Over the last year I have trimmed my weight by 25 pounds and am feeling great about it. Michael has lost 60 pounds and looks like a teenager again. He finally grasped portion control and figured out that he can't eat as much as he did when he was actually a teenager. I have also been learning a lot about healthy foods and how to cook them. Introducing zucchini, squash, peppers, almond milk, whole grains, and greens into our diet has helped our health tremendously. I am sure there are other things about me that have changed but this is the biggest one.

Have a blessed evening and thanks for reading!

Day 21- One of your favorite shows

Do I have to pick just one? One of my favorite shows? Current? Former? All time? Drama? Comedy? Guilty Pleasure? Ok, since there are multiple categories I think I should pick one from each :)

Current Favorite Drama: Parenthood
Current Favorite Comedy: The Big Bang Theory

Cancelled too soon Favorite Drama: The Gilmore Girls (I know it was on for 7 seasons but that was not enough!)
Cancelled too soon Favorite Comedy: Mad Love

Favorite all time Drama: Lost
Favorite all time Comedy: Friends

Favorite Guilty Pleasure: Charmed
Favorite Reality Show: The Biggest Loser


Is that enough of my favorites? I hope so. Let me know if you need to know more about me ;)

Have a blessed evening and thanks for reading!

Day 20-How important you think education is.

Very important. I don't really know how they would like for me to expand on this topic. Education is very important.

I think this challenge shouldn't ask such cut and dry questions. It's hard to expound on this.

Have a great evening and sorry I don't have more for you to read!

Day 19- Disrespecting your parents

Is this a question or statement? Should I disrespect my parents? Are they encouraging it? Do I ever do it? Is this something I should condone?

As a general rule, I don't think you should disrespect your parents. I do however believe that it happens from time to time. I hate to see kids yelling at their parents especially in public but at the same time parents are sometimes morons.

Respect is a two way street. I'll leave it at that.

Have a great evening and thanks for reading!

Day 18 Your Beliefs

This certainly is a broad topic. Is this like "what is my platform"? I should feel like a politician or a beauty queen. Those are two very different areas. Things I believe...this should be fun. I am a fan of the bullet-ted items so I will list the things I believe in that way.

I believe:

• in Jesus Christ as my personal Lord and Savior.
• in spirits that are angels and demons.
• that all people were created equal.
• cats are the best thing to keep my blood pressure down.
• working out (exercising) is one of the most empowering activities I can do for myself.
• in eating healthy 95% of the time.
• that blood is thicker than water.
• performing music is a window into a musician's soul.
• people are morons. People like blood sausage (name that movie).
• that all people are good. I am an eternal optimist.
• that in heaven we will all eat macaroni and cheese for every meal because it is the best!
• in the Fair Tax.
  
• you should chemically clean all brass instruments at least once every 6-8 months.
• you should also clean your toilets at least once every 6-8 months (well, more than that...).
• in this quote from Giordano's Pizza in Chicago, "Everyone should believe in something, I believe I'll have another slice of pizza."
• that I watch more television than the average person. I am addicted.
• the internet is the greatest invention ever.
• my husband is the best!
• it is time for bed.

Have a great evening and thanks for reading!

Day 17- Your highs and lows of the last year

Highs:

• went to Ireland
• repair shop in the black with Michael working full time
• trip to NYC with the girls
• lost 25 pounds
• learned to cook really good healthy food
• have an awesome husband that loves me
• passed a certification course for professional flute repair
• Steel Band has been performing regularly around Atlanta (FOR MONEY!)
• going to have another niece/nephew
  

Lows:

• too busy to breathe
• had to go to hospital due to numb arm (pinched nerve)
• lost Flannel, the cat

That's all I can think of on a Sunday afternoon when I have a headache and the USA Women's Team just lost the World Cup (guess that could be a low).

Have a blessed evening and thanks for reading!

Day 16- Your views on mainstream music

Once again I must ask you to pretend. Pretend that I wrote this post yesterday and I that I wasn't completely busy playing with my steel drum band. I guess Saturdays are a little packed these days.

My views on mainstream music. As a musician I guess I should really make a well thought out argument for this topic. As a normal human being who has a house to clean, groceries to get, and places to go, I will sum up my views very succinctly and get on with my life.

I think mainstream music is crap. All of the new pop artists today go into a studio and they auto-tune their voices to make them sound half way decent and that doesn't always work. Plus with the lyrics they write I am pretty sure they are winning no awards-reference the song "Friday" and you will know what I am talking about. There are catchy tunes and decent singers but all of the "great" music is gone. It's just not being produced anymore. Give me the exception. I would love to hear some decent music.

That's all for now. I will be back later to give you today's edition of the 30 day challenge.

Thanks for reading!

Day 15- Your favorite Tumblrs

I'll be honest I had to look up what "Tumblr" was. I guess I am not into the lingo. Michael assures me that I can just list my favorite blogs and it is the same thing. I am afraid to list all my favorites because you will find out the freak that I am and how many blogs that I look at and read on a semi daily basis. Some of these I check multiple times a day because it is summer and I am close to the computer. Others I only check every few days and the last ones are the ones I consult for recipes. Please don't judge. Here they are:

Absolute favorites:
www.skinnyrunner.com
www.thepioneerwoman.com
www.pbfingers.com
www.faithfitnessfun.com
www.runeatrepeat.com
www.snack-girl.com

Ones I check often but not multiple times a day:
www.afoodiestaysfit.com
www.knackfornutrition.com
www.allieatfood.com
www.biochemista.com
www.branappetit.com
www.chowdownatlanta.com
www.danicasdaily.com
www.dashingdish.com
www.imanokie.com
www.itsuxtobefat.com
www.ohsheglows.com
www.onefitfoodie.com
www.pure2raw.com

Recipe Favs:
www.skinnytaste.com
www.laaloosh.com
www.hungrygirl.com
www.preventionrd.com
www.thehealthyapron.com

There are more but my fingers are wearing down and I have to actually pay attention to my nephews that are here. Have fun exploring!

Have a blessed evening and thanks for reading!

Day 14- Your earliest memory

You are going to think that I am insane. You might stop reading after I tell you this. If you don't believe me I will understand.

I was three years old at my house in Lilburn. I was outside playing in the yard catching fireflies and loving life. I remember thinking I would like to remember this moment for a long time to come but remembering things was hard for me. I fully acknowledged that there were numerous things that I had already forgotten all about or that I remembered having difficulty recalling. I thought I needed to make some sort of statement that I could definitely remember later on in life. I was on the patio looking up at the screen porch in our back yard. I help up three fingers and I said to myself, "I am three years old and I am going to remember this day for the rest of my life." And I have never forgotten it. I don't really recall anything before that although I can remember events that happened and my mom said that I was only two at the time. But I know I was three on the back patio and I very clearly remember that moment from that summer. Crazy? Brilliant? Both? You decide.

Have a great evening and thanks for reading my blog.

Day 13- Somewhere you would like to move or visit

This is a NO brainer. I would love to back to Ireland. Could I live there? Probably. It was so beautiful and the food was so good. We visited mountains and parks and the coastal waters and saw giant fields of green grass. I could ride my bike and run everyday. I could listen to live music every night. The food was not processed but came straight from the farm. Everything was fresh and organic. Yes, I could live there. I would miss everyone in the US but I could visit and skype. It would be something I could deal with if I could see this everyday.... Hello Ring of Kerry. I miss you!

I am going to go and look at my finances now and see if I can rearrange some things so that I can make the big move ;)

Have a great evening and thanks for reading my blog!

Day 12-Bullet your whole day

Ok, the day is not yet over but I will bullet what I have done and what I will do.

• Woke up, spent 50 minutes on elliptical while watching "When in Rome"
• Ate breakfast (smoothie and two waffles) with hubby
• Returned business emails
• Repaired a Baritone Saxophone, flute, and an oboe
• Ate lunch (hot dog, corn, veggies, and hummus) with hubby
• Repaired another oboe and another flute
• Almost threw said oboe across the shop (gave to hubby to fix)
• Started another flute repair (replaced 2 pads) and left to set up
  

The following items are what I am going to do next:

• Take a shower (I smell!!!)
• Go to dinner at Los Hermanos to celebrate a friend's birthday
• Read my favorite blogs on the interwebs
• Check in on facebook
• Go to bed.

Today was not a particularly exciting day. I wish I could've done this on a more interesting day but oh well.

Have a blessed evening and thanks for reading!!

Day 11- Put your iPod on shuffle and write the first ten songs that come up

First of all, I don't have an iPod. And this might strike you as strange but even though I am a music teacher, I don't really listen to music all that much. I do have a Zune, which I really like, and I use it while biking or running. I am not sure how to use a shuffle setting on it. I usually just play one of the playlists that I have created and go about my business. Let's see if I can figure this out and post my music below.

1. Adeste Fideles, Bing Crosby
   
2. The Fourth of July, Craig Wright
   
3. Don't Stop Believin', Journey
   
4. It's the Hard Knock Life, from Annie
   
5. Harajuka Girls, Gwen Stefani
   
6. My Happy Ending, Avril Lavigne
   
7. Uneasy Rider, Charlie Daniels
   
8. Concerto for piano and orchestra, Chopin
   
9. World on Fire, Sarah McLachlan
   
10. Under Pressure, David Bowie

WOW! That was fun and diverse. I should mention that I don't listen to Christmas music all the time but I do have one playlist that is all Christmas music, thus the Adeste Fideles. I would have to say that that #3 is my favorite of the randomly selected music but I also love to rock out to some Gwen Stefani. Here is a startling revelation that you may be surprised to know about me. I am a closet dancer. Those who have Zumba'd with me know this but others are new to this fact. I LOVE to dance. I am not particularly good at it. I feel like I look like Elaine (from Seinfeld) when she dances but I don't care. I just try not to do it in public and make a fool out of myself.

Do you like to dance? Who's your favorite dance artist?

Have a blessed evening and thanks for reading!

Day 10- Discuss your first love and first kiss

So here is today's for real post.

I don't know that I can say that I truly loved anyone until I met my husband. I think that I "thought" I was in love. But it was either superficial love or it was really just lust-keeping it real people. Now that I have been married to my husband for 11 years I feel like I can scratch the surface of what love really is. Much like the love that the Heavenly Father has for us. His love is so great that it is not really measurable by any human means.

As far as first kisses go, I am not sure that I am ready to discuss that with the general public. I was 14 and it was in my first "real" boyfriend's basement. It was dark and his older brothers knew what we were doing and tortured us afterward for a LONG time. That's all I care to say about that.

I guess that's all for today's topics but I would like to vent for just a second. I went out shopping today to find shorts to workout in. Apparently my body is shaped in a way that no short on earth can fit me. Women shorts are too short, teen shorts are too tight, boy shorts are too long in the torso, and men shorts are too long on my leg. I spent forever at the store and only came away with one pair of shorts that were also too expensive for my taste.

In addition to my vent on shorts I would also like to complain about snotty salespeople. Why do people go into sales if they are not going to be helpful and nice. I was asking honest questions about protein powder to a salesperson at the GNC and she was less than enthusiastic about answering me. She also continued to point me to the most expensive products instead of what might meet my needs the best. ANNOYING!!!

That is all. Vent over.

Have a blessed evening and thanks for reading!

Day 9- How you hope your future will be like

Ok. So pretend that this is from yesterday and that I didn't forget and get too busy with steel drum practice. Then after you are finished pretending, visit our steel drum website and see how awesome we are www.steeldreamin.com

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How I hope my future will be like. I am pretty sure I answered this question already. I told you all what I wanted to be doing in ten years. How is that different from my future? Do they mean my immediate future. Like what I want to do today? this week? in the next few months? I can definitely tell you that!

Today- I am going to Petsmart to buy cat litter for the crazy animals at my house. I also plan on getting a newspaper and clipping some coupons. A little down the list of importance is to clean my room and clean out my closet. I think I really need to do those things but they are never pleasant. I also need to repair a few instruments and take a walk or ride my bike. Lastly, I also plan to seriously consider taking a nap. I miss naps. I should take them more often.

This week- is going to be busy. I have to deliver some instruments to a school, finish more repairs, go to a meeting for my school, take care of my nephews (while sister goes to Harry Potter), and play a gig for my awesome steel drum band at Lake Lanier Islands. Whew!!

In the next few months, I plan on taking a trip to California, going to DC to visit Michael's brother, starting school, teaching band camp, continuing to exercise and be healthy!

I hope you have enjoyed my future! I'll write today's post later.

Have a blessed morning and thanks for reading my blog!

Day 8- The moment you felt most satisfied with your life.

I think that moment is now. I am very happy with my life. I love my husband, my job(s), my house, my cats, my family, my friends, and everything. I am very thankful for all the blessings in my life and I try to live with no regrets.

That was short but I was at the G Braves game tonight and I am really tired.

Have a blessed evening and thanks for reading!

Day 7- Your zodiac sign and whether you think it fits your personality.

Hey Baby, what's your sign? That's all I ever think of when it comes to zodiac signs. That and the lady that used to have a 976 number to call and get your "reading" --whatever that was!

My birthday is Feb 18th which falls in the sign of Aquarius. It used to be the last day of the sign but then they changed the zodiac calendar. I don't really know why/how/anything about why that was done. Since I know nothing about my sign (except that it is the water bearer), I set out to google to find out more.

A quick jaunt over to this website http://www.astrology-online.com/aquarius.htm

and it tells me these are my traits....

Traditional
Aquarian Traits

Friendly and humanitarian
Honest and loyal
Original and inventive
Independent and intellectual

On the dark side....

Intractable and contrary
Perverse and unpredictable
Unemotional and detached

I guess I agree with everything except the "Perverse" part. I am very friendly and loyal, honest and independent- to a fault, very inventive/intelligent, and the dark stuff is true too. I can be VERY contrary. Sometimes, I don't do things just because I was told to do them. Ask my mom about when she would ask me to clean my room. I am not very unpredictable but I do like to keep people guessing and I can be detached (as noted yesterday).

So all in all, I guess I am like my sign. Does that mean that I am like every other person born on these dates? I should hope not.

I am off to a party.

Have a blessed evening and thanks for reading!

Day 6- Write 30 interesting facts about yourself

Well, I know I can do this one. The facets may not be interesting but I do have at least 30 facts about myself.

1. My middle name is Lee.
2. My middle name is also my aunt's middle name that was also my great grandmother's maiden name.
3. Somewhere along that genealogical line was Robert E. Lee.
4. I love to cook.
5. I take pride in making healthy dishes with vegetables that my husband, who is a veg-a-phobe will still eat.
6. My Dad used to teach a star gazing class at the father-daughter camping trip we used to take with the Girl Scouts.
7. My dad used to make me tell that joke from the movie, "Roxanne". (All totally planned)..ME: Dad, what's a light year? Dad: It's the same as a regular year only less calories.
8. At that same camping weekend, we also had an entire skit for the campfire with Fred, the trained chain (it was really a piece of chain).
9. My hubby also likes stars. He almost majored in Astronomy.
10. I dropped out of Astronomy in college because I couldn't do the physics.
11. I got the lowest grade of my high school career in physics (an 85!!!).
12. My favorite class in high school was English.
13. Really, my favorite class was band, being that I majored in it and all.
14. I love cats.
15. I currently have three cats at my house, Chloe, Lucy, and Clancy.
16. I miss Simon (the cat), he died two years ago.
17. We buried him in the yard.
18. There are two other deceased cats in our yard (one is Ashby, the other is Mardi).
19. 2009 was a bad year for cats at our house.
20. I am obsessed with blogs.
21. I love to read about how people are eating healthy and working out.
22. I find that the older I get, the more I care about nutrition.
23. I am in love with frozen yogurt (don't tell my husband).
24. Even if I am not hungry, I will eat frozen yogurt.
25. I love the summer and watermelon and fireflies.
26. I love to go to flea markets, garage sales, and consignments stores.
27. I am cheap but I like to eat healthy and combining those two things is hard to do.
28. I am trying to set a fitness goal for Labor Day. Michael says I should do 100 push ups. That's a lot! We'll see.
29. I have no appendix. It was removed when I was 14.
30. I love to write and tell jokes and make fun but it is EXTREMELY difficult for me to put my real feelings out there into the world. I have a hard time sharing (I was painfully shy as a child and never grew out of some parts of it).

That's all! Have a blessed evening and thanks for reading my blog!

Day 5- A time when you thought about ending your own life

WOW!! These questions are not getting any easier. Well, I guess this one is easy for me because the answer is never. I have honestly never thought about ending my life. I am joyful and positive and I try and maintain a healthy outlook on life. I have been depressed before but nothing that was bad enough to quit living.

Have you thought about it? What made you not do it? How do you maintain a healthy mindset?

Have a blessed day and thanks for reading my blog!

Day 4- Your views on religion

My views on religion. This is difficult and not just because my cat is sitting on my computer while I am trying to type.

I am a Christian. I gave my heart for Christ a long time ago. I try and live my life according to His will and as close to the path of Jesus as I can. If that's what is meant by religion then I am all for it.

Unfortunately, I have had several nasty interactions with very "religious" people. I do not like that. For some reason, being Christian to them, meant to be very judgmental and righteous. Not cool.

Also, I am of the opinion that there is only one way to Heaven, through Jesus Christ, our Savior. Therefore, "other" religions are not for me. Make of that what you will. I am not going to say that they are wrong but that I believe there is only one true way and people are lead down many paths to that way.

There, I said it. That was hard. Hopefully you still love and respect me for what I believe.

The 30 Days continues tomorrow. Happy 4th of July!!

Have a blessed and Independent evening and thanks for reading!

Day 3- Your views on drugs and alcohol

Ummm.. this will be a short post.

I am not interested in either so I don't know that I really have "views". I believe there is a reason that the legal drinking age is 21 and that should be respected. I drink occasionally (usually just at the beach) and I never get out of control. I don't do drugs and people that do are stupid.

How's that for my day 3! Take that blog world. Fastest post ever!

Have a blessed day and thanks for reading!

Day 2- Where you'd like to be in 10 years

Wow! This is a tough one! In ten years, I will be 43. OMG!!! 43! That's old!!!!! Of course, I will not think that ten years from now. In the big scheme of things ten years is really not that far away.

I think my biggest wish is that Michael and I will have a bigger family of some sort. We have talked about having a child, getting a dog, adding another cat to the brood. I will let you decide what you think I want more.

I also would like to be working from home full time either as a mom, repair tech, homeschool teacher, children's choir director. The possibilities are endless.

The only other thing I would like like to see myself doing in ten years is travelling to another country. Last year we went to Ireland and had a SUPER awesome time. Now I wish to either go back or explore another country.

Really, all in all, I am very happy with my life and where I am. In ten years, I would just like more of the same :)

Have a blessed day and thanks for reading my blog!!

Day 1- Your current relationship

Alright people, Day 1 is here. Today's topic: Discuss your current relationship.

Be prepared to get sick. I don't mean like you have a cold. I mean like sappy, grody, sick to your stomach, blech. Because I am about to espouse the wonders of my current relationship with my husband, Michael. I say his name and do a little girly sigh inside, because my husband is the dreamiest. You'd think after 11 years of marriage I'd be sick of this guy but no, I still really love him.

I guess I'll start from the beginning on the rare chance that you haven't heard this story for the millionth time. I met my husband at band camp. We are both musicians (hence the name of the blog) and at the time that we met, Michael was teaching band at a high school. Being the young thing that I am, I was still in college but was on staff for their summer marching camp. The week before the camp where I met Michael, I had taught a different camp with some friends from college. During the first camp, I had officially made a pact with God that I was through with dating. I had been single for a few months and there were zero prospects out there. I had even contemplating transferring schools. But then, I met Michael.

We both remember the exact moment that we met. I was nasty dirty gross from teaching outside and I think I was even wearing a hat (which I almost never do). Michael was mingling with the kids and we both looked up and kind of locked eyes. I new that he was the "new" assistant band director because I had taught the camp the year before. I would love to say that this was love at first sight but it wasn't. Don't get me wrong, I thought he was cute but I wasn't sold on him yet. In fact, it took a little while for me to come around. Mostly because after I had showered off the dirty nasty and started a load of laundry in the dorm facilities where we were staying, I went to visit Michael at his room. I am a friendly person, so I went to introduce myself. Michael had his entire life in this little dorm room: computer, stereo, bed spread, books, printer, everything. We started chatting and he starting digging on my college. He HATED my school and thought everyone that went to my school was a stuck up snob. I walked away thinking, "I'm glad I never have to see this guy again."

Regardless of our first meeting, there was something about Michael that kept drawing me to him. I firmly believe that it was God. God had a bigger plan than either of us could see and it was for us to be together. The whole week, I would talk to Michael and everyone kept pushing us together. The kids, the parents, the other band director, they all thought we made a good couple. We even won that as an award at the camp "best couple".

I wasn't convinced that Michael was the one for me and I will tell you why in another post. But that is all for today because I have a life and need to get to it. Check back later for part 2 of my story with Michael.

Have a blessed day and thanks for reading my blog!


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I'm Back! Here to continue the story.

Why did I not think Michael was for me? Even though all signs were pointing (pushing me) to him? Michael was not a follower of Christ when I first met him. He didn't NOT believe but no one had ever really talked with him about a personal relationship with Christ. I, having grown up with a strong faith, was not willing to enter into a relationship with a man that did not have the same faith as me. There was a reason God kept bringing us together, it was to lead Michael to Christ. I don't talk about this often because it is really Michael's story to tell.

Before Michael was lead to Christ, we spent a lot of time talking. We wrote emails, talked on the phone, and went on a "date". I told him that it was not a date because we were just friends (seeing as how I would not date a Non-Christian) but it ended up being a date after dessert. Because we were just getting to know one another, we asked each other all kinds of questions. What's your favorite vegetable? What's your favorite drink? Coke or Pepsi? What's your favorite dessert? It turns out that our favorite dessert was the same thing. We both LOVED Cheesecake. When the waiter came and asked what we wanted, we said we would like cheesecake. Dessert came to the table: one slice of cheesecake, two forks. We were officially on a date.

Michael and I continued this "friendship" and it grew and grew and grew. Michael accepted Christ. I fell fast and hard in love with my new best friend. We have been best friends ever since. Engaged after only four months of dating, a year long engagement, and eleven years of marriage, and we are still stuck like glue to each other's hips. (Prepare barf bags now) I know that God drew us together all those years ago so because he made us for one another. He compliments and completes me in a way that only the Maker and Creator would know how. We are one in our marriage and I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world.

I love you, Michael!

Thanks for reading. Tomorrow is Day 2!!