August: Done

How in the world is it already the end of the month? Seriously!?!!?!?!? This was the biggest whirlwind of a month I think I've ever had.

* Had a chance to speak to a group from IWU when they came to visit the station. It was such a fun day to have them observe the show and then give them a tour!!

* Began the official, hard-core, planned-out training for the 10K. I've been pushing myself to run on my own for a couple of months, but I printed out the official (granted, NOVICE) training program and began the days of stop-watched runs and cross training and stretching and...and...and...

* Thoroughly enjoyed the Olympics which, of course, technically began in July but the bulk of the viewing pleasure fell in this month!

* Went to the zoo...okay...TWICE! Two zoos, two purposes. Once for work and once just 'cause!

* Worked the Fandana Music, Arts, and Film Festival in Huntington. Ended up getting a beautiful day to be outside.

* Spent some quality time with the fam when my brother-in-law, Jeff, came home to visit for a few days! Always good to see him.

* Finally got rid of my gray roots...an adventure only about 2 months overdue. YUCK!! Think I'm entering a growing-out-the-bangs phase, too. I'll keep you posted on that.

* Worked my only Super Summer Sticker Stop, which was, of all places, in a WALMART parking lot! That was the day the lady showed up with an alligator. Only Bekah!

* Attended the Women of Faith Conference in Indianapolis, which resulted in my infamous run-in with hotel security, since clearly I looked questionable. Eyeroll.

* Got to meet up with friends for dinner now and then, which was so wonderful. I feel like I need a whole separate 24 hours in each day to keep up with everyone!

And y'all...the crops and trees are turning...I feel like we should be entering OCTOBER, not September. What in the world is up with this early fall????? I feel like I'm completely losing time here!

Tubby Tummy to 10K

So...the race is in a month.

One. Month.

Oh sweet mercy. I need a lot of work between now and then. Here are some observations I've made since beginning the OFFICIAL training program.

* I definitely run better with a partner. I run 3 times a week to train, and since the training began, I've only run alone one time. I was a wimp. I need someone to encourage and push me or I just give up.

* While I did have some success in running a mile (or three) without stopping, this body was not made to do that on a regular basis. I have more success if I take some walking breaks throughout the run. I'm a very fast walker and it keeps me encouraged (and able to breathe!) when I can start running again without feeling like I"m going to die.

* All those Lamaze classes I took with Chris and Trudy during their childbearing years...are paying off. That breathing comes in ever so handy.

* I need to eat about an hour before I run. Running too soon after eating has disastrous results which we won't go into at this point in time. Running before I eat does not work. I don't have enough energy.

* You cannot run and cry at the same time. (Unless breathing is optional.)

* I need new shoes. NEED. Not want.

* I really do feel better - but don't tell anyone I said that.

* I have a lot of work to do in ONE MONTH!!!!!

Redemption

The things I find when I start opening drawers...it's amazing. I hide so much stuff from house hunters! This week I opened the little cubby on the fireplace where I stash the remotes...and I found a post it note with a blog post idea. Don't mind if I use it now!

I'd seen this one somewhere...can't take credit for it. Using the first letter of my name, give a word to describe Jesus.

This word came to mind immediately, and if I use my given name of Rebekah, it fits the criteria:

REDEMPTION.

I was at the grocery store earlier this week and ran into two people I'd not seen in forever. They, of course, asked the standard "How are things?" and I was so thrilled to say that everything was wonderful. Not a single complaint. (Not even in my house remaining on the market!)

Both of them knew me and walked with me through that season of deep heartache two years ago, when I lived in a spiritual and emotional desert and spent all my time pacing and crying and wishing I could just melt into the wall somehow.

The days when life stopped and nothing seemed it would ever be right again.

How thankful I am that He's the God of redemption. How thankful I am that the brokenness I felt is completely gone. That healing has taken place. That I no longer cry myself to sleep every night in hopelessness and I don't awaken to that dull ache in the pit of my stomach. That I have hope for a future.

And I can say that because He has redeemed it. He has brought life from death.

This is Who He is to me.

My Redeemer.

And this is how my heart feels about that:

Women of Faith

Today...a photo essay of my trip to Indianapolis this past weekend to the Women of Faith conference. I pause to tell you that I took (almost) no pictures of the conference itself, because my friend Nita has an uh-mazing camera and I knew her pictures would be ridiculously better than mine. So...I told her I'd steal hers when they were ready (giving her full credit, of course, which makes it NOT stealing...). Meanwhile, I have these to share with you.

Here's the group I went with. I'm on the left, in case you don't recognize my new hair. :) Then there's Nita and her sister Ruthie - and Bre. We had so. much. fun.

Our fancy pants hotel...the JW Marriott in downtown Indy. The one in which security doesn't care for me. :)

Our view from the 14th floor. Pretty amazing, huh?

And to the right...Lucas Oil Stadium. Home of Super Bowl whatever it was last year.

Some very strange things about the hotel included:

1. A full length mirror next to the bed. I took a picture but it looked a little weird so I'm not posting it. Anyway. This mirror ran the entire length of the bed and when I woke up in the morning...HELLO!!!! I'm not really crazy about waking up to a view of myself in the morning!!

2. Frosted glass bathroom doors. Odd to be able to see shadows moving around inside (a little creepy if you're with people you've just met!). And it doesn't hide light well either. (Didn't bother me as I'm scared of the dark anyway - but if you're bothered by light, THAT'S a problem.)

Our hotel from a distance at night as we walked back from the conference.

Nita with the statue outside Victory Field.

The statue was alive, by the way. Yeah. I freaked out.

After Bre's shower, she discovered someone had written in the mirror, "I'm watching you." Hope not, as one of the other ladies fell OUT of the shower that morning. Don't think she wanted an audience!

My early morning picture of the skyline....

Which, two minutes later, looked like this. Stunning.

So that's the photo essay!! Hope to have some other fun pictures for you soon!!!

Hotel Security and Other Tales

So.

This past weekend, I went to the Women of Faith conference in Indianapolis. My friend Nita invited me to go (a few months ago) and her sister Ruthie was part of our group, as well as her daughter, Bre.

We stayed here:

Y'all, this is a fancy pants hotel. Fan.cy. Pants.

I knew that going in, but it was solidified when I got on the elevator and discovered you had to scan your room key to be able to punch in the floor you wanted to go to. Seriously.

I'd left the room briefly in the afternoon to take some pictures out a window in the hallway and after fighting with the key card a couple of times, I got back in the room and off I went on my merry way!

That evening, we returned to our hotel after the first round of sessions, and the other three in my party went back up to the room. I stayed in the lobby area to make a phone call and then I went back upstairs too.

When I got on the elevator, a couple other pairs of people were there, and floors were already punched in. I slid my card, punched the 14th floor and waited. The others exited the elevator and a young man (an employee of the hotel, per his little coily cord stretching from his earpiece to his shirt, and his very nice suit) got on. He looked at the unlit board and said to me, "What floor are you on?" I said, "14th, why?" He said, "Let me see your key." I handed it to him and he slid it. Nothing. He slid it again. Nothing. He slid his own and punched the 14th floor, handed my card back to me and said, "You will probably need to get this remade at the desk, ma'am."

1. Don't call me ma'am.

2. Okay. (And I had no intentions of doing so, as I no longer planned to be separated from my party, thankyouverymuch.)

As I stepped off the elevator, he stepped off too. Um, excuse me? Did I ask for company????

He said "What's your room number?"

As if I know. This isn't the Super 8. You didn't write it on my card. So I said, "Ummmm not sure but I know it's the first one past housekeeping."

This is when I knew I was in trouble. "Ma'am I'm sorry but I'm going to need to come with you. Are you a guest in this hotel?"

YES! I HAVE A KEY! DO YOU NOT SEE IT IN MY HAND???????? (Sorry for the attitude. I hadn't had my evening coffee yet. Because the hotel Starbucks was closed at 11 p.m. on a Friday night in the middle of the state capital. But I digress.)

As we made our way toward "the first room past housekeeping" he was already on his walkie talkie. He said to me, "What name is the room under?" I said, "Echelbarger." He called the front desk from outside my hotel room and asked the lady what the name was associated with this room. She said, "Echelbarger."

Toldya.

He said to me, "I'm going to need to see some photo ID."

What is it with me and photo ID????????

To my credit, I DID have it on me this time, so I pulled out that horrific license and showed it to him. He said, "Your name isn't Echelbarger."

I never said it was. You asked me whose name the room was in. Give me a break. You have a hotel full of women here for a Christian conference and you expect each of them to have their name on the room!??!!?!?!?!?!?!

(This would have been a good time for Starbucks to open.)

He said, "I'll need to see hers then."

So, my dear people, at 11:00 on a Friday night, I knocked on the door of my own hotel room, and when Nita answered (in her jammies), she found a bedraggled looking Bekah standing with a hotel employee saying, "Can you just um, grab your driver's license real quick??"

She's never going to take me anywhere again.

And while I appreciate security, I would just like to say, REALLY!?!?!!?!?!!?!?!?!?!!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!

It's the Weekly Recap!

This has been a CRAZY busy week, y'all!! CRAZY!! Check it out:

* Last Sunday after church, I went to Mom and Dad's for lunch with the family and to celebrate their 58th wedding anniversary.

It was such a gorgeous day out that I proceeded to go for a leisurely walk on a trail and then did my official run for the day (3.5 miles, thankyouverymuch) later. Topped off the day with a Colts game! (On TV. I didn't run to Pittsburgh for that.)

* Monday was a monumental day in the hair life of Bekah. I got an overhaul:

Took 2 1/2 hours in the chair to get rid of the 2 inches of pure white roots and mess I had going on. Went to visit a friend of mine after that; had a great time talking, laughing, crying (shocker!) and drinking coffee!!!

* Tuesday afternoon/evening I worked the Super Summer Sticker Stop at work, which involved my inaugural experience driving the BIG van and doing a callback to the station to report in on the air about our adventures. I was so nervous about both, but I did it!

* Wednesday we had a going away party for Anna, our intern. The quietest you'll ever hear a bunch of radio folks is when you offer them pizza and ice cream cake. Not a sound except chewing. :) That night I went for another run...not loving my times this week but pretty proud of myself for pushing forward!

* Thursday night I had dinner with the lovely Jenny!! Hadn't seen her in a few weeks, so of course there was much to catch up on. We managed to dodge kids' night at Fazoli's (yay!) but showed up for training night. LOL - we have all the luck. ALL. THE. LUCK.

* Friday I had the day off work and made my way to Indianapolis to attend the Women of Faith Conference! My friend Nita invited me several months ago, so I went along with her, her sister, and her daughter. WE HAD SUCH FUN. (Of course, more on this later...including my run-in with hotel security. Oh yes.)

 * Yesterday was day two of Women of Faith - and I had another great day with my friends! Check out this sunrise from our hotel room. (Yes. I saw a sunrise on a Saturday. AGAIN. What is up with this????)

Pinterest Inspiration. I didn't take a picture of mine (gasp - WHAT!!!??) but I did a take on this cute play-on-words inspired gift for a friend of mine who needed a little pick-me-up:

Source: kimskandykreations.blogspot.com via Rebekah on Pinterest

Heavy Lifting

Lynne often says to me (or to guests) that she tries to do the "heavy lifting" on the show. (Meaning she tries not carry the responsibility for whatever task is at hand.) And I try to do that here on the blog as well, but perhaps the fact that I just typed, "I try to do that hear on the blog" is indication that I need a brain break for a day, SO....

I wanted to give you a few links to some things I've enjoyed reading lately. You might not like all of them, but perhaps one or two!

* This post on blog photography by Emily A. Clark. I love everything about her blog every day, but she does have some of THE coolest blog pictures I've ever seen...so I loved her ideas on how to make a good picture!

* If you're a sucker for vintage backyard weddings, check out this post with some very, very pretty pictures and sweet ideas. I'm a sucker for such things.

* Been reading this blog for a little while now. This blogger is the (new) daughter-in-law of Jennifer Rothschild. (She is an author and speaker, and last spring, Lynne and I worked her Fresh Grounded Faith Conference in Lima, Ohio.) Anyway. I think this blog shows much inspiration and deep faith. Love it!

* Had a chance to interview this blogger a few weeks ago. She is A DELIGHT. And she inspires me to want to purchase my very own paint sprayer and get busy finding ugly furniture at yard sales. Seriously.

* One of the sweetest posts on motherhood I think I've ever read. Love the relationship the lovely Beth Moore has with her daughters!

* And because one blog is not enough for me...I've been blogging for work. This post hit me extra hard.

And now, because you're probably tired from ALL the heavy lifting, I shall zip my trap shut and let you rest!!!

Thanks for being willing to do the heavy lifting for this brain-tired girl today!

Red, White and Sparkly

This week I had one of those little moments that just sort of smacked me in the head as a life lesson. Thought if I got smacked, maybe you should too. (Boy don’t you just LOVE the encouragement you get here in Bekahland? Welcome! I hope you get smacked!)


I just love presents. Love to plan them, love to give them, and not gonna lie – love to receive them. It’s a good feeling, isn’t it? To know that someone thought about you enough to get you a present?

One of my friends came to visit this week, and I ran around the house, as my mother would say, “being a Martha.” I needed to unload the dishwasher so I could reload it and get the mess off the counter. I needed to clean up the living room – a room I’d been too busy to even walk into for two whole days. (Seriously. Who doesn’t walk into a living room for two days??? You’re not home enough if that’s the case, I think.)

And right before we left the house for a little bit, I paused in front of the massive mirror that hangs on the dining room wall, above the buffet. I needed to “check the fat factor.” You girls know what I’m talking about. You turn sideways, suck in, and lament how much more needs to disappear out of the tummy region. After giving the standard snarl of disgust and defeat at the end of the fat factor check, we headed out.

And when we walked back in the door, I saw it.

A perfect rectangle wrapped in bright red paper, tied with a white ribbon and finished with a sparkly silver bow. A present. For me.

Red. White. Sparkly silver. How had I missed that?

I turned and said, “When did you put that there?”

The answer stopped me in my tracks:

I did it before we left. I thought you would see it when you looked in the mirror, but you didn’t. I knew you’d see it eventually.

That red, white, and sparkly silver piece of goodness had been literally 2 feet from my eyes and the only thing I could see was a muffin top. I was so focused on what I saw in the mirror – and more specifically, what I saw that did not meet with my approval – that I missed the generosity and blessing wrapped in a bow and parked 2 feet away.

And immediately I thought, How many times do I do that to God every day? He plants a gift in front of me – something He knows I’ll love so much – and I miss it because I’m focused on the things that annoy me.

Gulp.

I kept the bow. Think I’ll leave it out for a while as a reminder that I don’t want to miss the gifts.

Super Summer Sticker Stop

Tuesday afternoon, I worked a Super Summer Sticker Stop...along with Ken, Ron, Marion and Anna.

I was quite nervous to be assigned the task of driving this big bad boy:

 That would be an actual, full size van. Not a mini van. A big van. I took comfort in being large and lime green. Hoped that would give me the right of way. (Isn't that in the driver's manual for the state of Indiana? Biggest, lime-est vehicle has the right of way?)

We set up our van and tent in a Wal-Mart (gulp!!) parking lot and handed out new window stickers to people who stopped by - and we also collected items for the Red Cross.

 I was putting a sticker on a vehicle when I found out there was an alligator in that car. Yes. A real live, honest-to-goodness alligator. Anna was so excited; she wanted to hold it. I stood a safe billion miles away and relied on the rockin' good zoom feature on my camera!

 In the down time - a rousing game of frisbee! I didn't participate in that.

 I was busy preparing for my first ever call-back! When we do these kinds of events, we call back to the station to talk to the on-air person about what's going on out on location. I'd never done a call-back before, but this was my day! I did three (nervous about that too!) and they said I did a good job!

Had fun - especially meeting the people who stopped by.

(That's Marion cleaning a window for a new sticker.)

Best of all? Did you see the DAY we had for that thing? Perfect blue sky and white puffy clouds? Made me feel (only slightly) guilty for the crew from last week - who worked on a freezing cold and very rainy day. WOOPSIE!!!

Zoo Day!!

This past Saturday, I worked at the Fort Wayne zoo, alongside our intern, Anna. Not gonna lie to you. I was nervous going into this one. I'd been to this zoo only once before, and it was last fall for another work event. I hadn't been the one to drive that day, so I paid little attention to how we got there or navigated our way through the zoo. I stayed put in our spot all day and as a result...I had no clue where to go in this place.

To top it off, Anna hadn't been there before either. So at 7:45 in the morning, two non-morning rookies, armed with caffeinated beverages, set out at the mercy of a GPS (in a town currently laden with construction and detours) to a brand new place.

You get the nerves, right?

I didn't fall asleep OR get lost OR wreck the van, even while trying to maneuver it through a walking path at the zoo. Anna and I set up the tent (another source of nervousness for me, as this tent knows me personally and hates me) and got ready for a morning of fun!!

 Anna and the prize wheel. Yep, it was like Wheel of Fortune! This time the fortune was in the form of water bottles, pens, mood pencils, fling rings, bookmarks, and animal shaped notebooks.

 Our working instructions ended with the admonition to not let any animals escape. Gulp. Seriously?!?!?! Is that even possible? I could only imagine: "Hey Mom? Can you wire me some money? I have to buy a replacement kangaroo..."

So I'm thrilled to report they are, indeed, safe and sound. And in their little spot.

 Anna and I had a few minutes to spare between setup and the zoo opening, so we peeked around a bit. The sea otters had a lot of waving to do...we liked our own personal sea otter show!

 Pretty peacock!! They just ran around for fun! No cage required!!

 Bekah, the coffee and the prize wheel!

We did have so much fun out there...so interesting to meet people!

And not let the animals escape.

Housewarming Gifts!

I posted about this on Sunday...it was my Pinterest inspiration for the week. Thought I'd share the rest of the idea here!

My friend Rachel just got her first place. I'm SO proud of her! Love seeing her make a way on her own after college! It also makes me remember those days in my life and how many little things there were that I didn't know I needed...or I'd run out of and find myself in a bind. So, I decided to fill up a bucket with some of the little stuff and give it to her as a housewarming gift!

Here's the finished product:

And here's what I put inside, and why:

* Food storage container...which I will probably fill with a treat of some sort - and perhaps the recipe to accompany it because that's a fun housewarming gift! You can never have too many little containers to pack in your lunch box!

* Cheese grater...because no one ever thinks to get you a cheese grater...and one day you'll need it!

* Light bulbs...because one day, one burns out and you realize you don't have any in the backup stock. (I mean...not that this has ever happened to me...) And I got 2 different wattages because I've learned my lesson in THAT!!

* A little kitchen scrubbie brush...for the day you realize you need to scrub something!

* A kitchen timer...because even if you have one, someday you'll need to time two things at the same time!

* Chip clips...because you can never have too many chip clips!

* Candle lighter...because you don't want to be halfway through your candle lighting festivities when your last one runs out.

* A fly swatter...because someone gave me one when I moved out on my own and I thought it weird at the time...but later was so glad I had it!

* Hand sanitizer...because cleanliness is important!

* Packing tape...because one day you'll go to mail a package and realize you don't have any!

* Scrubbie sponges...because now you're the adult and you have to clean.

* Goo gone...for all the new picture frames and such you buy for a new place...that are likely to have sticky stuff on them.

* Microwave food covers...so you don't have to use paper towel, which inevitably sinks down into the food.

* Spatula and spoon...because much like the timer, sometimes you need multiples.

* Cleaning gloves...because cleaning is gross.

Put it all in a bucket (which can be used for cleaning too!) and add a paint chip as a card!

TA DAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

58 Years Ago Today...

There was a little wedding...

 In which these two tied the knot...

 Frightening how much I look like her, huh??

What do you get the people who have declared they no longer need anything?? MUMS!!! You know...something that requires WORK.

 The uber-hysterical card my sister sent...the inside says "Pucker up!!!" Not something I want to think about, but still funny.

 Lori and Jeff got them a decorative rain gauge. (Dad is obsessed with measuring rain. Been a rough summer for his entertainment factor.)

 Mom offered to "plant" the rain gauge...ummmm inside????

Happy anniversary, Mom and Dad!

It's the Weekly Recap!

* Last Sunday I (once again) tried to show my inner sports fan by cheering on the Colts in their first preseason game. Oh stop it. You're not on the wrong blog. I really wrote that. I donned my from-the-fat-days-Go-Blue! shirt and parked in front of the TV to check out this new guy and found the game to be kind of interesting! (Yes. Again. I said it.)

* Monday evening I went over to Greentown to see Malott and family...at his mother's viewing. So sad for him that she's gone but so thrilled for her that she's no longer hurting! I always hate reuniting with people under those circumstances, but I was glad to see them.

* Tuesday I got a call from my realtor that she wanted to show my house the next day, so I played mad dash to clean before the troops arrived! While out on an errand, though, check out this watercolor sky I witnessed:

* Wednesday I got to join Lynne in interviewing Michelle McKinney Hammond. I remember hearing her speak at Extraordinary Women last fall. So strange to actually be TALKING TO HER. So cool. Then that night...another run. This one only 2.5 miles and it was a ROUGH ONE. Kind of ticked me off that it took me 2 minutes longer than the last time I ran that distance. But as my running partner reminded me, I still did it without stopping and that's an accomplishment.

* Thursday night I had dinner with the fam at IHOP. My brother in law is in town for a couple of days, so we all met up to eat. Jeff, posing with his pancakes....

* Friday night I ran...for only two miles, and it was TERRIBLE! I thought I might die (I didn't, in case you weren't sure) and my time was pitiful. I am told there are days like this. How did I cope? Came home and slept. That'll show it.

* Saturday I got up at 5:00 IN THE MORNING and worked at the Fort Wayne Zoo for the morning. 

More on this later...but it was a fun morning with Anna, our intern...and the prize wheel! :) My first time to work an event that includes that!

Pinterest Inspiration.  A little housewarming gift, if you please....

Source: champagnethursdays.com via Rebekah on Pinterest

More on this later too...but here's the little gift I made for Rachel, who just got her first place.

Summer Bucket List, Part B

If you missed Part A of this list...scroll down!  Picking up with good old number sixteen...

16. Cook a live lobster. Allow me to clarify. I never cook anything that was LIVE when I put it on the stove. And I don't want whole animals on my plate, thankyouverymuch.

17. Go for a natural high...the kind that literally takes you off the ground. I really really really wanted to go for a hot air balloon right at Conner Prairie this summer, but I never made it there. And I didn't even fly anywhere this summer. Fail.

18. Smell like salt-water all day. Well I didn't smell like salt-water, but I was AT the water and I did smell (and not in a good way):

19. Move the dinner table outside. No pictures of it but I did (as I mentioned yesterday) eat dinner outside one night - during the most lovely gentle rain. I'd have eaten outside more often this summer but it was a furnace out here.

20. Build a campfire. Couldn't. Burn bans.

21. Go to an outdoor movie screening. Well, it wasn't a movie, but I did go to this outdoor play. Count???

22. Grow something green. In the same summer in which I killed a cactus (Seriously, who DOES that?) I did manage to successfully nurture a lemon balm plant someone gave me for my birthday. SUCCESS!!!!

23. Make a great picnic basket. Define great. :) I did pack a picnic for the play...

24. Hike to the summit of a mountain. HEY. How was I supposed to know I shouldn't have worn flip flops??? SO we didn't make it to the summit, but I'd call this pretty up there...

25. Stargaze. Before the summer is over...I will.

26. Keep summer alive...stock up on berries and freeze them. Ummmm I have some berries in my freezer. We won't talk about how long they've been there. I'm reeeeeeeeeeally keeping some summer alive.

27. Eat all the plums, peaches, cherries, and watermelon that you possibly can. I had a few grapes. Does that count??

28. Watch a sunrise and sunset. Check and CHECK!

 29. Play hooky from work and sit in a park. Don't believe in playing hooky.

30. Keep a journal to remember how much fun you're having. Ahhhhhh sweet success.

Not too bad!!!!! I did more of the list than I expected!

Summer Bucket List, Part A.

I read a lot of magazines for work, and this week I was buried in an issue of Whole Living when I ran across their 2012 Summer Bucket list. Just for fun, I thought I'd see if I'd accomplished anything they suggested. Surprisingly, I had a productive summer!! Wanna see how I did?

1. Prep all of your meals without using your stove or oven for a day. I'm going to guess eating out doesn't count? :) I'm sure I did this via the magic of yogurt for breakfast, sammich for lunch, and chips for dinner, but I can't prove it.

2. Skinny dip.  HA. Right.

3. Take in a music festival. Well as a matter of fact...this past weekend...

...I attended Fandana! (This was during sound check...hence the lack of audience.)

4. Run through a meadow, a la The Sound of Music. I was a bit early on this one...accomplishing this one on Easter weekend, but still...

5. Find a strapless bra that actually fits. Um we're not going to talk about that. What kind of list is this, anyway?

6. Be the first one at the farmers' market and score the best heirloom tomatoes. I was not the first, and I purchased nothing, but I did go to a farmers' market for the first TIME. Does that count?

7. Take more pictures. Define MORE. :) I am pretty sure I accomplished this!! Want an example? OKAY!!

Proof that I'll have a picture of anything. The port-a-potties I swore I'd NEVER use...turns out you should never say never.

8. Reread your favorite novel. Oh that I'd had time for this. I adore reading. And novels for that matter.

9. Get caught in the rain - and like it. Dance in it, even. It's no secret that I'm not a big fan of storms (and therefore I tend to avoid rain). But I did eat dinner on the porch one night this summer during a gentle rain (porch is covered, of course) and another night I stayed out there for a bit watching it and smelling its goodness. This is progress, my friends.

10. Take a road trip. CHECK! Times two!! Granville and Asheville, baby!

Apparently cars dehydrate me. :)

11. Use those miles already. I don't travel enough to accumulate points. No can do.

12. Get the room with the view. Does this count?

The parking lot might not be exciting, but check out those mountains in the background! Mmmmm!!

13. Catch lightning bugs with the kids. 1. No kids. 2. No lightning bugs this year! I seriously remember seeing them ONE night. And it was a billion degrees outside. I wasn't going to catch anything. Thankyouverymuch.

14. Nap so long and hard that you can't remember where you are when you wake up. CHECK!!!! Every Sunday afternoon, baby!

15. Play a new kind of hide-and-seek and let someone stash your phone for a day. That's not even funny.

Tomorrow? Part two....or B. Whichever.