Proud to be an American

Two things lately have made me proud to come home to the good old USA.  First, our recent visit to Mexico.  It was only Tijuana, which most people know is absolutely disgusting, but it always makes me sad to see entire families living on the street and sending their children to beg for money.  It just breaks my heart.

Second is the book I just finished reading, A Train to Potevka.  I highly recommend it.  It is about a former US intelligence agent working in Russia during the fall of the Soviet Union.  He's also a Mormon and relates a lot of his experiences while there.  His descriptions of Russia and the desolate conditions of living there brought me to tears a number of times.  It just made me so proud to live in a country where we enjoy so many freedoms.

Back-to-School Fever

Coming Soon:  My favorite time of year!

I love the last four months of the year.  The weather is usually pretty good and every few weeks it seems we get to celebrate a major holiday.  It's the best!  Although, it always seems to go by way to fast and before you know it we will be crossing out our dated items and fixing them to say 2009.  I can't believe it.

The end of August or beginning of September is always the kick-off.  Back to school!  I can feel it coming just around the corner.  However, I find myself in that period of life where I am neither in school, nor have children in school (kinda sad).  Maybe not sad for some, but I actually love school.  I've always been really good at it, frankly.

Hearing about all the goings on of everyone else going back to school fills me with excitement of starting a new adventure and taking on new challenges.  I feel like Meg Ryan's character in You've Got Mail when she emails Tom Hanks' character, "Don't you love New York in the fall?  It makes me want to buy school supplies.  I would send you a bouquet of newly-sharpened pencils if I knew your name and address."  (And as an important side note, I LOVE New York in the fall....or any time of year.)

I love when the seasonal section at WalMart is filled with pencils, spiral bound notebooks, crayons, backpacks, and school lunch boxes.  I remember my mom planning a special trip to the store to get me my very own Trapper Keeper.  It just makes me want to go out and stock up for the upcoming school year.

Don't get me wrong, that new feeling seems to always wear off within weeks after you've been sitting in class all day, every day.  But, the anticipation is so exciting!

I myself am glad to have finished school with a college degree, but I would be lying if I said I wasn't excited to take my kids back-to-school shopping and buy them a shiny new pack of mechanical pencils, some elmers glue, and a ruler.

Today I Learned....

That "winningest" is actually a word.  A real word that you can find in the dictionary.

I hate running out of toothpaste, but I hate it even more when I have plenty and my husband just steals it.

Doing nothing seems ok when it involves watching the Olympics.  It makes me feel like part of the history that is being made.

Summer is not as fun when you don't get to do traditional activities like bonfires, family vacations, picnics, water fights, and parades.  At least I no longer have to survive winter.

I hate it when you find a link on the internet that leads you to the wrong place.

DVR is awesome, but the internet is the greatest back up I have.  I couldn't survive without it.

I hate wind including any wind stronger than a light breeze.  I could never live in Chicago.  Or Palm Springs.