What a year!  Goodbye to 2008… Hello 2009! I ripped this one from Jill at Live Laugh Blog.

1. What did you do in 2008 that you’d never done before? Tried pupusas.  Yum.

2. Did you keep your new years’ resolutions and will you make more for next year?  Well, I had intended on losing weight and eating better.  I did start to eat better, but since I got prego, my doctor frowned on trying to lose weight during the pregnancy.  Maybe next year.

3. Did anyone close to you give birth? My sister-in-law gave birth to my sweet little niece Kameron!

4. Did anyone close to you die? My Grandpa RC died back in April.  While he could be a mean stinker, he was also a neat guy and I miss him.

5. What countries did you visit? None, this year, but would love to do so.  Now all I need is a passport…

6. What would you like to have in 2009 that you lacked in 2008?
More money would be nice.

7. What date from 2008 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?  September 6th… it is the first big anniversary for Andrew and I… number FIVE!  Looking forward to the next 50!

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year? Mothering 2 kids and making it through the year with my hair intact and not gray.

9. What was your biggest failure?  I’m sure there are many, I just can’t think of any.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury? Just pregnancy related problems.  Luckily they weren’t as bad as the last two pregnancies.

11. What was the best thing you bought?  The matching mother/daughter aprons from Etsy.  They are darling and I love when Katie puts hers on and helps me in the kitchen.

12. Whose behavior merited celebration? Katie finally being potty-trained!

13. Whose behavior made you appalled?
A certain family member who is the biggest conniving liar/manipulator and continues to make other family members miserable.  But this is nothing new… this person has been like this their entire life, so no surprises there.

14. Where did most of your money go? Health insurance & bills.

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?  Putting together a book about my Great Grandma (she lived to be 105 and wrote her life story)… my great Aunt sent me some ancient photos and I just need to focus over the next month on getting them scanned in and starting the book.

16. What song will always remind you of 2008? Any theme song from PBS.  LOL

17. Compared to this time last year, are you:  Last year I had just given birth, this year I will give birth in 3 months.  I’m not as overwhelmed as I was, thank goodness.

18. What do you wish you’d done more of?  Finishing projects that I’ve started.  I have at least 5 sitting on my desk that I need to complete!

19. What do you wish you’d done less of?  Worrying about things I have no control of.

20. How did you spend Christmas? Day & eve at home with my immediate family.  Then on Saturday, we went to my mom’s for a big she-bang.  It was great.

21. Did you fall in love in 2008? Yes, with my son!  It’s been so exciting watching him grow this past year and to see his adorable personality shine through.

22. What was your favorite TV program?  I don’t really have a favorite, but it’s been fun watching all of the shows I’ve never seen before on our new digital tv.  (Dirty Jobs, Robot Chicken, Good Eats, etc.)

23. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year? Don’t hate anyone, but there are a few people I don’t care for.

24. What was the best book you read?  I really enjoyed Dixieland Sushi… it gave me flashbacks to when I was in Junior High/High School.

25. What was your greatest musical discovery of 2008? Well, mom & I saw Wicked, and I had no point of reference for that play before seeing it, so it was neat to hear the music for the first time.

26. What did you want and get? I bought myself a food processor online, but didn’t read that it was a chopper only!  I returned it to the store and they had a poor selection there, so I have yet to replace it with one that grates (which is the whole reason for getting one!)

27. What did you want and not get? See above.

28. What was your favorite film of this year?  Hard to say… I certainly didn’t venture out to the movies this year… maybe once or twice to the dollar theater with the kids, so that hardly counts.  I did enjoy seeing Indiana Jones because, hey, it was Indiana Jones.    There were plenty of funny flicks too, but honestly, offhand I can’t think of one!

29. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you? We were on vacation and celebrated in San Francisco.  I turned 34!

30. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?  Being out of debt.

31. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2008? What fashion concept?  I wear whatever fits!  LOL… the first half I was getting out of my maternity clothes, while the second half, I was getting back into them!

32. What kept you sane?  My crazy friend Jenn.

33. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?  I fancy Mike Rowe.  A lot.

34. What political issue stirred you the most? You know, I really don’t like getting into politics… I have my views, but I really don’t like discussing them.

35. Who did you miss? Some of my friends that I don’t get a chance to see often enough.  I am a big hermit and don’t get out much with the kids on my own.  I need to work on that this coming year.

36. Who was the best new person you met? I’ve not actually met anyone new this year, but have made many new contacts through my blog!  I love reading all of your stuff and thanks for all of the fun comments you leave me.

37. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2008: Again… don’t worry about things you can’t control.  They’ll work themselves out.

38. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.
Even though we ain’t got money… I’m so in love with you honey… everything is gonna be alright.

Trish & Lisa both posted about Festivus, which is kicked off with the Airing of Grievances.  Trish states that blog traffic is down, presumably due to the holidays, so she encourages anyone reading to freely say whatever you want- air those grievances, because no one is reading anyway!

So in the spirit of Festivus,  I am sharing mine.  

• Inconsiderate drivers.  Nothing gets me riled up more than idiot drivers.  When you see a pregnant person trying to cross the parking lot with a cart, please stop and let her go by.  For Pete’s sake, I had 7 cars go by before I finally just walked out in front of one.  It’s not like they didn’t see me standing there waiting to cross.  IN A CROSSWALK no less!  Bastards.
• Inconsiderate drivers (again… there are so many).  I actually saw someone zip the wrong way down a one way lane just to cut someone off and steal their parking spot. 
• Idiot parents… yeah, it’s a great idea to take your 3 year old to see Tropic Thunder (rated R) at the theater on a Saturday night.  Don’t mind me… or the nightmares your bratty kid is going to have after seeing such a bloody gory ‘comedy’.  Smart move.
• People who text while driving.  Hopefully they’ll bash their car into another texting driver and the world will be free of them all.
• Teenagers who walk around cursing when there are little kids around.  Even worse… adults who do it.
• The 5 year old walking around Target with the pacifier in it’s mouth.  Come on.
• The woman who still breastfeeds her 8 year old.  While extended breastfeeding can be beneficial, at some point it just gets creepy.
• Going to Disneyland and paying $4.00 for fries that are limp and cold.  I don’t think so.  I had hubby go back and get a newly made batch.  If I’m going to pay that for a small order, they better darn well be hot. (Have you noticed that their food is crap?  Just because you’re feeding the masses doesn’t mean it has to taste bad and be so expensive.)
• Ebay customers that win your auction and don’t pay for a month.
• The emails I get from an official in a foreign country who will pay me millions if I just send them my bank account info for them to transfer money to me.  I’d ask if anyone falls for this, but apparently people do.
• Government bailouts… I know plenty of small businesses that could use the help and have either closed or are about to. 
• When you tell your kid to go wash the frosting off her face and she uses her nightshirt instead. (This just happened, and yes, I gave my kid a frosted cookie for breakfast.  It’s the holidays!!)

I’m sure I could come up with more, but I’ll have to save some for next year.

What gripes do you have this year?  Tell me!

I know I’m skipping over Thanksgiving entirely, but here is a little Christmas meme…

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? 

Either one, depending on the gift

2. Real tree or Artificial? 

I prefer real if I can afford it.  Probably no tree this year.

3. When do you put up the tree?

After Thanksgiving

4. When do you take the tree down? 

Around the first of the year.

5. Do you like eggnog?

Yes!

6. Favorite gift received as a child?

Cabbage Patch Kid

7. Hardest person to buy for?

My dad & my father-in-law

8.Easiest person to buy for?  

My kids

9. Do you have a nativity scene? 

No

10. Mail or email Christmas cards? 

I only mail cards… and usually make them (but not this year… are you nuts?)

11. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? 

I can’t think of one I didn’t like

12. Favorite Christmas Movie? 

A Christmas Story, but I also love Elf.

13. When do you start shopping for Christmas?

I try to shop throughout the year

14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present?

Of course.

15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? 

Most anything homemade is good to me!

16. Lights on the tree? 

Yes 

17. Favorite Christmas song?  

O Holy Night.

18. Travel at Christmas or stay home? 

We’ve never actually ‘travelled’.  We usually go to each parent’s house.  But this year planning on staying at home… too much running around!  Just want to enjoy the day with the kids at our house.

19. Can you name all of Santa’s reindeers? 

Yes

20. Angel on the tree top or a star? 

I don’t even know what decorations I have!

21. Open presents on Christmas eve or morning? 

Both… we usually see extended family and friends both days.

22. Most annoying thing about this time of the year? 

The lines at the stores.

23. Favorite ornament theme or color?

I have an old angel from when I was a kid.

24. Favorite for Christmas dinner?  

Turkey or ham

25. What do you want for Christmas this year? 

I know I’m getting old… a food processor and a dustbuster!    But a gift cert for a massage or pedicure would be even better!

Here is a meme I stole from Matt.  I changed a few questions because some of his didn’t really apply to me.  Feel free to re-post. 

1. What is the worst treat to get when trick-or-treating?

 A nickel for UNICEF.  I understand the concept, but does a 3 year old?  No.

2. What was your favorite Halloween?

When I was in 9th & 10th grade, my Grandparents decorated their entire yard and house and had a huge party for all of the grandkids.  We all got to invite about 5 friends.  They had a DJ, caricaturist and lots of food.  We had a great time and I know several of our friends still remember and talk about that time.  It was awesome.

3. Would you rather be a zombie, alien, or psycho? (why)

Psycho wouldn’t be far off from my normal outfits.  

4. How many Halloween, Friday the 13th, or Nightmare on Elm Street movies combined do you have on dvd?

None

5. What is the scariest movie you have ever seen?

Probably Poltergeist.  I still won’t watch it.

6. Name a few of your favorite costumes over the years.

Tammy Faye Bakker (I put on tons of makeup and had mascara streaming down my face.  This was when she was still on PTL with her husband Jim), and Elvira(see picture in #2). 

I still hold a grudge against Lisa, who in kindergarden, got to dress up as a fairy princess and I had to be a clown.  Grrr… those tears are real in the picture!  I was so upset, my mom let me change into my Wonder Woman bathing suit and wear that instead. 

7. Favorite Halloween treat?

I LOVE Milk Duds, but have to give them up since THIS happened to me. 

8. Friendly-faced jack o’lantern or scary one?

Friendly!

9. Have you ever had nightmares about a scary movie character chasing you?

Not chasing me, but that Poltergeist movie has done a number on me while sleeping.

10. Best thing about Halloween?

Dressing up the kids.

11. Strangest Halloween custom you’ve heard of?

The only one that comes to mind is smashing pumpkins afterwards. 

12. Person in your family who most likes Halloween (not counting yourself)?

I have two friends that really get into it… Jon and Rachel

13. Your lamest costume?

I was a baby a few times.  Note my friend’s ’sexy’ costume.  What did I know? LOL

Krista just tagged me on her meme.  I did one like this a few months back, but since there are a few questions that were not on my old one, I figured, ‘Why the heck not?’

So here we go…

What were you doing 10 years ago?

Living with a boyfriend (waste of time) in Costa Mesa and working as an Administrative Assistant at a mortgage company (with a view of the ocean, thank you very much!)

What I was doing 5 years ago:

Planning my wedding!  Andrew and I were engaged pretty much right after we met, but I got my ring in February and we made it official.  I had a blast planning this event and all of the mini-events.  That was a really fun year.

One year ago:

Oh geez.  Last year was a doozy!  But specifically one year ago, we had just moved into our new house, Andrew wasn’t feeling well, and we were just about to find out that he had cancer and I was pregnant. 

Yesterday:

Yesterday I was in housecleaning mode.  I went through the boxes of clothing that my friends gave me for Grant, and started filtering in new outfits for him to wear.  Also did a ton of laundry, made some baked ziti (though it was really medium shells since I didn’t realize I was out of ziti), and researched internet stuff.

Five Snacks You Enjoy

1. Ranch Dip with veggies or Ruffles
2. Hot Spinach Artichoke Dip
3. Six Layer Dip
4. Baked Brie
5. Buffalo Mozzarella with basil

5 things I would do if I had $100 Million:

1. Invest
2. Find a charity and give some away
3. Start some sort of business with my hubster
4. Own a cheese factory  
5. Get fat(ter) from eating the cheese in my factory

Five Things You Would Do If You Were a Millionaire

1. Buy a house closer to my family
2. Travel overseas
3. Get a fabulous massage
4. Donate some money
5. Pay off my bills

Not necessarily in order!  

5 places I would run away to:

1. France
2. Ireland
3. England
4. Germany
5. Somewhere exotic

5 TV shows I like:

I don’t have cable, but there are lots of fun shows I’ve seen but don’t know the names of, so…

1. Cooking Channels
2. Travel Channels
3. Home Improvement Channels
4. Family Guy
5. American Idol (I only watched seasons 1, part of 2, 5 and now 7)

5 things I hate doing:

1. Dishes
2. Filing papers
3. Going to the dentist
4. Dealing with poop (thank God for disposable diapers, because if I had to wash poop out of cloth ones, I would have gagged to death by now.)
5. Waiting.  I am very impatient.

5 biggest joys of the moment:

1. Baby feet/cheeks/laughter/smiles
2. My singing daughter
3. My new pear candle courtesy of my lovely friend Jenn
4. Knowing that my sis-in-law is going to have a daughter (even though she hasn’t had an ultrasound yet, I just KNOW I’m going to have a niece!)
5. My new apron

Five Songs That You Know All The Lyrics To

1. All songs from the Annie Soundtrack (even moreso now that Katie wants to hear that CD everytime we go somewhere – it’s in the car!)
2. Three Little Fishies
3. Love Shack – B-52s
4. Almost any song from Beauty and the Beast
5. Jolly Holiday – Mary Poppins

Five Bad Habits

1. Procrastinating 
2. Ask my husband… he’s sure to come up with 2-5 in a jiffy!

Five Things You Like To Do

1. Read!
2. Take pictures
3. Try new foods
4. Be crafty when I get a chance
5. Spend time with my sister and cousin DL

 Five Things You Would Never Wear Again

1. The striped shirt and pants that my mom said matched when she was half asleep.  Hmph! (I was 10 and the laughingstock of 5th grade that day)
2. Plastic Shoes
3. Side Ponytail
4. Neon ANYTHING!
5.  A bikini.  Well that would imply I have worn one before, and I can assure you, I have not.  You can thank me now. 

Five Favorite Toys

1. Mr. Gameshow

2. Body Rap
3. Diddo DIdo (Pacman), Bubble Bobble & Starforce on Atari/Nintendo
4. All of my stamping stuff.
5. My camera 

Oh, who to tag?  Let’s go with hsuree, mindicherry, allison & matt, and curly. 
And anyone else who wants to!

I’ve got one spot left in my Pay It Forward giveaway!  Don’t miss out… I’m a crafty girl, and I promise you’ll love what you get!

You know I can’t resist a food meme!  Stolen from aidarahim.

01. CHEESE or CHOCOLATE? Feta, brie, and buffalo mozzerella… YUM!
02. BLUEBERRIES or STRAWBERRIES?
03. COFFEE or TEA? neither! (but I love the smell of coffee!)
04. CORN MUFFIN or ENGLISH MUFFIN?
05. PANCAKES or FRENCH TOAST?
06. YOGURT or CREAM CHEESE? see #1
07. RICE or PASTA?
08. CAKE or PIE?
09. GROUND BEEF or GROUND TURKEY?
10. HOT DOGS or HAMBURGERS?
11. JELLY or MARMALADE?
12. AMERICAN CHEESE or SWISS CHEESE?
13. DIET SODA or NO SODA?
14. LEMONADE or ICED TEA?
15. CHERRIES or GRAPES?
16. CHOCOLATE QUIK or STRAWBERRY QUIK?
17. WAFFLES or PANCAKES?
18. WHITE BREAD or WHOLE-GRAIN/WHEAT BREAD?
19. PEAS or CARROTS?
20. PUDDING or FRUIT-FLAVORED GELATIN?
21. COLD CEREAL or HOT CEREAL?
22. KETCHUP or MUSTARD?
23. MUSTARD or MAYONNAISE?
24. MAYONNAISE or KETCHUP? eh stop with the condiments ah.
25. BLACK OLIVES or GREEN OLIVES?
26. ONION or GARLIC?
27. PLAIN BARBECUE or BARBECUE WITH SAUCE?
28. SCRAMBLED EGGS or FRIED EGGS?
29. EGGS or EGG REPLACEMENTS? either
30. MEAT or VEGETABLES? I prefer meat, but I love me some broccoli or a veggie tray with ranch dip!
31. CHINESE TAKE-OUT or PIZZA?
32. SUSHI or DELI SANDWICH?
33. WHITE CLAM CHOWDER or RED CLAM CHOWDER? I don’t eat anything fishy
34. KEY LIME PIE or LEMON MERANGUE PIE? less the merangue
35. PIE & ICE CREAM or CAKE & ICE CREAM? just pie or just ice cream
36. WHIPPED CREAM or CAKE FROSTING?
37. HONEY or MAPLE SYRUP?

How do you like your eggs?
Scrambled topped with cheese

How do you take your coffee/tea:
I don’t.

Favorite breakfast foods:
I love bacon and french toast, but I usually have cereal (Raisin Nut Bran)

Peanut butter: smooth or crunchy?
Smooth

What kind of dressing on your salad?
Ranch, but I also like a good oil/vinegar combo

Coke or Pepsi?
Neither

You’re feeling lazy. What do you make?
Whatever is microwavable

You’re feeling really lazy. What kind of pizza do you order?
I love pepperoni & olives, but since hubby doesn’t like olives, we get pep/sausage

You feel like cooking. What do you make?
Something with chicken.

Is there a food you refuse to eat?
ANY fish/seafood thing, including, but not limited to shrimp, lobster, scallops, etc.

Favorite fruit & vegetable:
Cherry/broccoli

Favorite junk food:
Spinach Artichoke Dip

Favorite between meal snack:
celery & peanut butter

Do you have any weird food habits:
I can’t think of any

You’re on a diet. What food(s) do you fill up on?
fruits

How spicy do you order Indian/Thai?
I don’t eat that stuff

The perfect nightcap?
A cold glass of water

Mindy tagged me with the Favorite Posts Meme which offers a second chance to older, perhaps forgotten posts.

Rules: Go back through your archives and post the links to your five favorite blog posts that you’ve written.

• Link one must be about family
• Link two must be about friends
• Link three must be about yourself
• Link four must be about something you love
• Link five can be about anything you choose

Post your five links and then tag five other people.  At least two of the people you tag must be newer acquaintances so that you get to know each other better. 

 Ok, so:

• Link one is the one about my grandma
• Link two is  about my childhood friends and my mommy friends.
• Link three is my interview with Amy
• Link four is what I love about summer
• Link five is the time that Katie got into Grandma’s lipstick

And now who to tag…….who to tag?

BookMama
Caley
Ruby
Polka Dots
Goofy J

Stolen from Life in One Day

• How did you meet your husband? Yahoo Personals!  I put an ad up just for fun because I liked to read about other people.  I actually came across his ad months earlier and commented to my cousin that he sounded like a really nice guy.  Then about 3 months later I got an email from him and told my cousin ‘hey, remember that guy?’…
• What first attracted you to him? Ooh, his deep voice over the phone was nice!
• How did you know he was the one? I don’t know HOW I knew, I just knew… and about a week after meeting him!
• How long have you been married? It will be 5 years in September!
• What’s something you learned about him after you were married that surprised you? I’m always learning new things about him!
• What do you argue about the most? What’s for dinner. LOL… probably what most people do… money and house stuff.
• What quality in him do you admire most? His creativity
• What is the hardest part about being married?  Well I was a single gal until almost 30, so some of the independence I had before is gone.  That was hard to get used to, but I’d say that I would trade my single independent days for my happy married life now!
• What’s the best part about being married? Companionship and knowing that you’ve made a commitment to this person.
• What’s the one piece of advice you’d give to other wives about creating a happy marriage?  Listen to eachother and try not to get defensive!