dogs

Thought-Provoking Questions

I know I’ve mentioned this before, but I love asking questions. Recently, after listening to me to talk to someone, a friend at church asked me if I took a class in college on asking questions. I told her that a lot of my journalism classes taught me about who-what-when-where-why-how questions, but I’m mostly just curious. I feel the insatiable need to learn about everything all. the. time. This character trait is exhausting and exhilarating. It’s also a great asset when playing trivia games like Taboo.

When I hear or read a thought-provoking question somewhere, I usually try to jot it down to think about and discuss here on the blog. I want to share some questions (and my answers) that have made me think recently, and I really want to hear your answers! I have a running list, but I’m just going to share three questions today.

1. What are things you vividly remember doing with your parents as a child?
Flying kites with my dad, baking banana bread and peanut butter cookies with my mom, having my mom help me put on tights before church on Sundays, sled riding, visiting the Outer Banks, camping, visiting my dad’s parents, and having movie nights with my whole family by the fireplace.

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An old family picture!

2. What is one of your saddest memories?
The first thing that comes to my mind is the last time I saw my great grandpa who lived in Upstate New York. He was sitting in his favorite chair on his enclosed front porch. He was just looking outside, and it seemed like he was pondering something really deep. He had lung cancer and was pretty sick at this time. My family visited New York about twice a year, and I remember looking at my great grandpa and thinking this will probably be the last time I ever see him. It was just so overwhelmingly sad. He meant the world to me, and many of my happiest childhood memories involved spending time with my grandpa Ivan. He was very special, and taught me a lot about life without me realizing it until I was older. I’m thankful that I knew my great grandpa long enough to have so many vivid memories of him.

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My great grandpa Ivan, proudly showing off his garden.

3. What was the best dream and the worst nightmare you’ve had?
My worst nightmare is tough to pinpoint. I have bad dreams constantly, but one that comes to mind quickly is when I was home alone in my dream and a man was trying to get into my house to attack and kill me. I tried to scream but I couldn’t. That was awful, though in the end of the dream I think my neighbor saved me!

As for the best dream, recently, I dreampt that it was my birthday and Jimmy gave me a Bernese Mountain Dog and a Siberian Husky as my birthday gifts. Yes, I dream about dogs on the regular (when I’m not having nightmares) and it is always awesome when I do!

Your turn! Answer some or all of the above questions!

Life Lately

It has been quite some time since I posted a life lately post!

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First, I have to say that I cannot believe it’s September. It’s just bizarre.

Anyways. August was a wonderful month for many reasons. I made my blogging comeback, went on vacation with my family, and had fun doing summer-y activities. The past few weekends have been jam-packed with adventure, which has been wonderful.

Fun things I did in August:
-Went indoor rock climbing
-Swam in a wave pool
-Visited the Washington County Fair
-Went out for frozen yogurt (for the first time ever!)
-Swam in my parents’ pool
-Did lots of pet sitting
-Harvested vegetables from our garden

Some pictures of all the fun…

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The Washington County Fair was great! I was most excited to see all of the animals, and Jimmy was pumped about the demolition derby, which was a new (and stress inducing) experience for me. One of the cars caught on fire during the derby and I was screaming my head off and pulling at my hair, while everyone else in the crowd was calm and enjoying the experience. I was so afraid the guy in the car was stuck, when in reality it probably took him about 10 seconds to get out of the flames. I am incredibly skittish about all things driving since I was in a serious accident in 2009. Anways, my parents and Hannah were able to go to the fair, too, so it was lovely to spend time with them!

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As for pet sitting, I watched Ava and Chloe (in the top picture) for the first time, and hung out with one of my favorite clients, Haley Mae. Ava is a papillon-shepherd mix, Chloe is a whippet, and Haley is a chocolate lab. They each have such different and cute personalities. It’s amazing to see their breed characteristics combine with their natural personalities to make them who they are. Ava adores being touched and having any attention, Chloe is a tug-of-war champ, and Haley is all about playing fetch and sniffing everything in sight. I love pet sitting!

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Some of the goods from our garden! I still need to post about our experience. It’s coming, I promise 🙂

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Brandy and Lola were reunited when Jimmy and I brought her over to my parents’ house last weekend! Also, Brandy loves to float on rafts in the pool. She’s adorable.

I’m so bummed I didn’t take pictures of the rock climbing and wave pool escapades! Jimmy and I went with friends from church on a Sunday and we were wiped. out. by the end of the day. I hadn’t been to a wave pool or rock climbing in years, so it was awesome to get out and do those things again.

Now it’s September, and I’m working on a fall bucket list. Unreal! I’m still hanging on to summer as long as possible, though 😉

What have you been up to lately?