Day 6: Oh You Make Me Smile

I have to admit, nothing in this world can make me smile like my little man can!  He has such a big personality, and I just love hearing every little word that comes out of his mouth...well, "I don't HAVE to" is getting pretty old, but you know what I mean.  Right now he is just starting to want to say a prayer at night.  I've been praying for him for a while now, but recently he has decided that he is big enough to say his own after I say mine.  First off, his prayers were just lists of things he was thankful for; "Mommy...Daddy...Camden...house...toys...Mickey Mouse...puppy dog...basketball...etc, etc. Amen!"  Tonight for the first time he incorporated the words "Thank you" into the prayer.  Here were some of the items tonight "Thank you Daddy...Thank you Mommy...Thank you Camden...Thank you house...Thank you friends...Thank you family...Thank you bicycle...Thank you Jesus...Amen!"  I literally grin from ear to ear listening to his sweet, innocent prayers.  It completely melts my heart.  I hope that he always feels the need to go to God in prayer.  I also think of how much it means to God to hear those little voices speaking to him.  I can't imagine the smile he must have on his face!
Also, he is obsessed with genders right now.  He will randomly look at me and say, "Mommy, you girl?"  I say, "Yep!  Mommy's a girl."  He responds, "Cam-Cam boy."  It's so funny.  When we bring up new people, he honestly has no clue about their gender until he memorizes it, but then he seems to always remember. 
One last thing with a few photos is his obsession with hauling things in the back of his tricycle.  He is constantly loading his special treasures and taking them for a ride.  Here are some of his most recent hauls:

Shoes

Sippy cup and a tape measure

A movie

I know it's silly, but I can't help but snap pictures of his little quirks, and I hope that blogging will help me remember some of the Camden-isms as he gets older.

Challenge Day 5

Today I am supposed to talk about my sibling: Jami Lyn Stanford Tennison.  Jami is one of the closest people to me in life. She is not only my sister but one of my best friends.  She is without a doubt one of the few in my life that I can tell anything to without fearing judgment.  I just love her to pieces!  We have so many memories even though we didn't get along growing up. Well, we did get along when she wanted us to get along.  I always jumped at any opportunity to be on my big sister's good side.  I can remember sitting in the bathroom on the toilet while she took a shower just so she would have someone to talk to.  No, she didn't return the favor.  That was my duty as the little sister! LOL  When we lived at home, we slept together every Christmas night.  It was just what we did! 

One of my best memories is of us making up little dance routines with our Pound Purries to Marie Osmond's song "Read My Lips"!  We would perform the number for our cat Smokey, and he loved every minute of it.  We also had lots of acrobatic tricks we would do.  I was a very petite child, so I could stand on her knees and shins and do lots of fun little routines.  When we were good, we were good, but when we didn't get along, it was pretty bad stuff!  Once Jami moved out of the house, our friendship began to grow into what it is today.  I cannot imagine my life without my big sister!

Challenge Day 4

Today I am supposed to write about my parents James and Vicki Stanford

There are not enough words to say about these people!  I can never thank them enough for my life and all the things they instilled in me as a child.  I love them for loving each other and for showing me what marriage is all about.  I love them (especially Mom) for taking me to church even when I didn't want to go.  I love my Dad for showing that it doesn't matter when you accept Christ in your life just that you do it!  Those are all of the mushy things, but let me tell you some quirks about my rents!  My mom is basically perfect.  She watches what she eats, she's adorable, she's nice to everyone she knows, she is a hard-worker, and an awesome friend.  She loves scrapbooking and bragging about her grandbabies.  She has recently discovered Facebook and is a loyal member of the social networking community.  My dad is beast on the treadmill.  He runs for an hour every day (he has slimmed down TONS since this pic was taken in 09).  Very seldom will you find him at home without a Soduku puzzle in his hand.  He is constantly buying coins for the 4 grand kids (yes, the fourth is my uncreated child! LOL) and puts them in a safe for them to have when they are grown.  Daddy is obsessed with Christmas movies.  He used to refuse to buy a foreign vehicle, but after I bought my own Honda Civic in 2000, he has purchased nothing except Hondas and Toyotas since then!  So that's my parents in a nutshell...to know them is to love them!

On another note, I have decided to name my blog "Pieces of Me."  This name hit me this morning on the way to work. For some reason I thought about Amelia's lo-lo-lo-love blog, and I remember commenting that Ashlee Simpson's CD "Pieces of Me" was one of my faves of all time and that I knew the words to every song on the disc.  So, I thought that was a catchy name with some personal meaning, plus my blog is just that: pieces of who I am.  Hope it's not disappointing or lame because I like it...for now.   

Challenge Day 3

L-O-V-E!  Today I'm supposed to talk about my first love, but I so don't want to go there.  I started to just fudge it and pretend like David was my first love, but that would not be very honest even though I wish it were true.  So, I decided just to follow Jaime's suit and write about some random things that I love at the moment.  This list is, of course, in exception to family, friends, etc.  Those are a given.  These are not so much:

I absolutely adore this show!  I love Friday nights just because of it.  Joan Rivers is not necessarily my favorite person in the world, but she definitely tells it like it is.  I have been pleasantly surprised with Kelly Osbourne!  She is such a sweetheart.  And the token gay fashionisto?  What's not to like about that?!  I do think that Giuliana has the best fashion sense of them all...at least I pretty much always agree with her opinion. Anywho, if you're not watching, you should!  Sunday nights on E!

 

I'm a Chinese food fanatic!  I love it more than anyone should love any foods. My favorites are fried rice and most any of the chicken dishes.  It's definitely not Weight Watcher friendly, but I'm already planning to treat myself to some yummy goodness after the meeting tomorrow night :) 

I do love all things Shakespeare!  I love this time of the school year when I get to just delve into Romeo and Juliet three times a day.  I'm anxious/excited to teach Julius Caesar this year.  I have neither read nor taught it in about five years, so it's going to be a challenge for me, but an exciting one!  I wish I had more time to read more just for the fun of it, but my life does not allow such as of now. 

Those are just a few silly little loves!  I'm still on the search for my perfect blog title.  I'm hoping my friends are loving the name generator toy I introduced to them tonight.  It seems to be a hit!  TTFN :)

Challenge Day 2

Today I am supposed to explain the meaning behind my blog name.  Boy, that's a real brain buster!  I probably have the worst blog name in the whole blog-o-sphere.  I've searched and searched and have not been able to come up with a cutesy, catchy name, so for now, I'm stuck with "Amanda's Blog."  I'm not giving up on my quest, and hopefully soon I will find the perfect name for my blog.

Back to Blogging-Day 1 of Challenge

So I have decided to rejoin the world of blogging despite my feelings that I never have anything relevant to say.  I am making an honest attempt to complete my friend Jaime's 30 Day Challenge so hopefully this will help me with my writer's block.

Day One- Recent picture, introduce yourself, 15 random facts

This is the absolute most recent picture taken of me.  I'm the one "driving" and that's my friend Christy riding shot-gun!  I had a back seat full of good friends because we were out celebrating Casey's birthday.  Anywho, I'm Amanda, and here are 15 random facts about me.

1. I'm a total foodie.  I love to eat.  It's my favorite, and it makes me happy.  My most recent addiction is double decker tacos from Taco Bell.  David introduced me to them.  Thanks, D!  Like I need another food obsession.

2. As a result of this, I'm entering my 2nd year of Weight Watchers! LOL!  I have quite the journey ahead of me to reach my goal, but I have faith (I think...) that I will eventually be a thinner, happier version of my self.

3. I'm obsessed with Hello Kitty.  If I ever have a little girl, there is no doubt in my mind that I will go broke buying her HK treasures.  Small gift...big smile  >..<

4. I secretly want to be a stage actress.  No movies, or tv....live stage acting.  I know that I do not have the skill, looks, or voice for it, but it's something that I have always wanted to do.  Any time I see a live play, I get emotional and cry.  I totally envy those who get to do that for a living.

5. My favorite movie of all time is Steel Magnolias.

6. I have a huge inferiority complex.  I pretty much feel inferior to every single person I know in some way or another.  Although, I have always had this and I do not think it will ever go away, I crave the idea of just being content with who I am. 

7. I sometimes want to have another wedding :) haha!  I was so young when I got married, that I would love to go back and choose a different dress, colors, etc. and to also approach it in a more mature way than I did as a 19 year old.  Of course, I would keep the same groom.  I think that may be the only part I did right!

8.  I truly believe that having a good group of girlfriends is just as important as any other relationship.  I am beyond blessed in this aspect of life!

9. I absolutely hate confrontation in any form.  I don't like hurting people's feelings for any reason.  Even if I know it's constructive and will help them in the long run, it is still hard for me to do.  If I do ever have an argument with someone, right or wrong, I will forever feel guilty about it, especially if it goes unresolved.  I have a hard time dealing with knowing people do not like me. 

10.  I've always known that I'm not a fan of snow, but this year I have come to realize that I hate it!  It causes nothing but trouble and it's super cold.  No thank you!

11. I'm very much looking forward to celebrating my 10 year wedding anniversary this year.  I'm planning to buy my husband a new wedding band as a surprise, and I'm hoping that he is going to make an effort to make this anniversary special.  We will have to celebrate late because of his work schedule, but I'm still excited about it.  Such a milestone!

12. I think my child is perfect!  I know every mom thinks that, so I guess it's ok.  He amazes me every single day.  Even though he has his "terrible two" moments and his brief mental breakdowns, I would not change one single thing. I could not have willingly created anyone better than he is.  In fact, I think he is better than anything I could have ever imagined or planned.  

13. I do not think I have the ability to finish an entire series of novels.  To my recollection, the only series I have ever completed was the Twilight saga.  I think I am a little ADD for series...

14. The next time I leave the country, I want to go to Greece.  

15. I decided this morning to hardcore potty train my child...now that's something to blog about! LOL 

Thanks for listening to my randoms. It actually feels good to be back in the blogging world :)