Good Times...

First off, for all of you who entered into the Giveaway, Jonnah and I will be drawing the name this Friday. I can't wait to see who will be drawn!!

This Friday began with a lot of rain. We were up bright and early to go to a Easter sunrise service practice in the Springfield baseball field. Our choir will be singing for the service on Sunday.

When we were finished a small group of us decided to hang out. We went to ihop for breakfast. I've never been there before. It was scrumptious and there was a TON of food. For me with my giant appetite, it was glorious. Let's just say only me and one of the boys finished all of our food. Yeah, sometimes it's embarrassing.

After that we went to the mini-golf park. I had only played once before. This time was soooooo much fun!!! Partly because of who I was with. Partly because I got third place. ;)

Us hanging with a dino in the mini-golf place. You can't really see him cause it's so small, but Joe's photo bombing the pic in the background...

 

By then the sunshine had come out and we were ready to do something awesome. So we all drove to Sequiota Park. It has a cave, pond, creek, trails and a huge place to play sports and hang out.

 

My sis Brisa and I living on the edge

 

 

The sister Abrienne

 

 

One of my best friend's Lauren climbing the wall beside one of the smaller caves.

 

 

All of the group {except my mummy, who took the pic}

 

 

 

Lauren doing a cartwheel. She's super talented, just saying...

 

 

Playing volleyball with a soccer ball. ;) It was fun.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We had to stay in town until 8:45 that night when we had my last soccer game. It was awesome! We lost by one point but we played so hard and had soooooo much fun!!! This is all the team! :D

 

 

And here is adorable little Orcrist {who we will still call Pickle for fun. ;)}

 

Me and babes...



 

 

 

 

And now I must go. Enjoy all those pictures. ;)

 

 







Lost in the Beauty of the Day...

We have had the most glorious wheather today and it is promising to be better tomorrow... Warm breezes, singing birds, sunshine filtering down out of spotless blue skies!

It has been breathtaking.

And so wonderful after the snow.

I ran two hard miles today. It feels like it has been so long since I did, though really it has only been a couple weeks. Running is so much fun. All four of my dogs {not Pickle} come with me. They run alongside me and I feel really special. ;)

*this big*

 



 

 



I am so happy to be alive today. I just feel like I could dance and sing all day long.

Tomorrow is my last soccer game. I have had so much fun playing this season. I am really praying we will win this last game. That would be so cool!!! I am kinda hoping we will  have a celebration of sorts commemorating the end of the season. If we do, I want to take pics and put them up here. :D

{I have the best family ever, just saying. This was totally impromptu.}

 

 



After Daddy got home we went and rolled two bales into our trailer for the cattle. They weight about 2 tons each and there are only 4 of us to push 'em up into the trailer. Plus, Daddy has a sprained wrist, so us three girls really had to do most of the shoving. It was fun. :D

I like work.

Also, I finished 20 pages of my book last night. I stayed up till 2 because I set a goal at 11:00 and I wasn't going to bed till I finished it. I did!!!! Eeek! Only 30 pages left now. I can't believe it...

I want to add a note. I don't talk about God on here because of a sense of obligation. I don't talk about Him because He is something I've grown up comfortable around and just feel like I should talk about.

I talk about Him because He is my life. He is my everything, my hope, my redeemer, my love. I am so blessed to be called His child. He has done so much for me. Who would I be if I did not tell of His wonderful love to me!!!!

Anyway, just wanted to say that. ;)



So Much More

Life is tricky. There is something mysterious about it. Something that intrigues me. Captivates me. Scares me.

There is so much that could happen to me. There are so many things I long to do.

I wish people would just understand. The world is so beautiful. And yet the world seems to seek out the darkness.

 

 

 

 

 

I believe it is a good day. It is sunny for the first time in forever. And warm. I am going to go walking with my sis.

 

Love is in my heart and hope is real to me. I know there is a plan for every move I make. Every step I take...

 

God is good.

 

Don't forget that. He is there. He cares.

 

=)

 

 





Pickle {the puppy}

Here are some adorable pics of Pickle I took today.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 And here are some from the day I brought her home {Saturday}.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sorry this is so short. I have to go finish some rolls for supper. Yum!

 



100th Post

Exactly one year ago I wrote out my first blog post, rather nervously. I had no expectations about what my blog was going to become. Several of my friends had blogs and I wanted to join their adventure. I'm glad I did.

Cause now we get to celebrate! Ice cream for everyone!! With raspberries sprinkled on top. Delish.



In honor of this post, the giveaway is closing and Jonnah and I were *going* to announce the winner. But due to the contrary weather which canceled our meeting...we were not able to draw the winner so we will postpone announcing it until "further" notice. How much further that will be...only time will tell. Not longer than two weeks, I can guarantee. We will definitely be seeing each other in two Fridays.

One year has changed me so much. I look back over my archives and I see the things I wrote. I see the way my writing has changed. I see the things that happened to me. I see how much I have learned. It shocks me. And makes me smile. {My first blog post makes me laugh so hard.}

God is so good. The last year has been painful in many number of ways. I have a habit of not telling people my troubles. I guess it is because I don't want to burden them. I hate it when people always complain of their rotten lives. So I don't.

Especially since this year has also been the best year I have ever lived. God taught me so much. So many of these posts are filled with life and love and opportunity! Pieces of my heart. And I can look back on it and see the journey that I have traveled. It is amazing.

Now I am going to tell you all about my Saturday, because it was a huge landmark in my life. It was filled with dogs, dogs, and more dogs... ~_* {I am still in love with this winking guy.}

For those of you who have been hanging out here long, you know that I own a business of raising show dogs. English Cream Golden Retrievers, to be exact. Well, the day came. They are finally old enough. I went to my first show!

And it was fantastic! Long, exhausting, brutal, but fantastic. Both Tizona and Silver won their championships! And Silver won top dog of her class in two of three shows {the silver plates}.

The basic outline goes like this. There are three different shows and three different judges. You pace your dog up and down a long mat so they can see their gait and then you stack them {see pics} for the judge to see their conformation. Then the judge will check their teeth and feel their joints and send you on your way. All three judges rate you on your 1. ring presence 2. head 3. body 4. front and rear quarters. In each category you can get  up to 50 points. A perfect 200 is almost unheard of, but VERY desirable. Based upon the rating of each judge, you get your ribbons. For the first set of three shows you have to get above a 177 to get your ribbons. There is a white ribbon, a red ribbon, and then the blue champion ribbon if you win the other two! You have to get above 177 in each show to earn all three. AND BOTH OF THEM DID! In fact, Silver got 199 in TWO of her shows! {I know this is all confusing. ;)}

Then, for each set of three shows you get higher ratings. Next show they will have to get above 187 to get their championships. And the one after that 197 to earn their prominent championship. Which is what you want to get.

So I have two more sets of three shows to go.... Scary. And exciting. Here are pics of Tizona and Silver stacked with their ribbons {and me too, ;)}!!

{Tizona}

{Silver}

 

 

{before the judge ~ sorry it's so blurry}

 

And then, after the show, I headed  to the airport to pick up our new pup. She does not yet have a name, so I am fondly calling her Pickle for the time being. ~_* She is a little doll.

 

 

Yes, I was exhausted in this pic. I woke up at 6:00 am to get ready for the show. And I very stupidly went to bed at 1:00 am...Yeah, slap me. Then this girl's flight was delayed so she didn't come in until 6:20 that evening. I ate VERY little until we got home so I was pretty tired. But happy. On more than one account.

 

And that was my Saturday. A lovely day. I will look back on it lovingly for a very long time.

 

Last night we got...more snow. :P I think Spring has forgotten what it is supposed to be like and decided to be winter. This SHOULD be the last snow of the season...but, knowing Missouri, you never can say.

 

Now I am off to finish pages of my book before the end of this month pounces out at me and yells at me for not finishing.... :P See more details of this at Stories in the Mind {link above}.

 

 

G'night, my dears!

 

 

Yes, it was planned. My 100th post on my one year anniversary. :D It may be silly, but it makes me happy. :D

 



Second Winter

 

Yesterday was the first day of Spring. {It was yesterday, right?} And we got six inches of snow. :P

Blah! Snow. White evil, in my way of thinking. It's cold. And wet. And ruins all your plans in life. ;)

Haha, ok, so maybe that's exaggerating a little. In fact, this snow storm proves to have an adventure tagged along with it. I am going sledding!



 

 

I will try to post pics of all my adventures disasters. :D

 

Also, Jonnah and I came up with more ways to enter our fantabulous giveaway and gather more credits toward winning the prize!

 

1) Pin the above picture (linked to either blog) and comment with the link to the board you put it on.

2) Share the Giveaway on Facebook and leave us the link in a comment so we know you need another entry.

 

3) Share the Giveaway on Twitter and leave us the link in a comment so we know you need another entry.

 

We are having so much fun doing this! I can't wait to see who is going to win! :D

 

Make sure you send us the links every time you do something, because otherwise we can't get you your credit! And we want you all to get as many as possible!! :D

 

 

 

 

And Charley, this is the pic that is for you. You will understand what this is. ~_*

 

I have to go get ready to go now. :D

 

Enjoy your snow-lovely days.

 

 



 







Pretty Much an Awesome Giveaway

In honor of both my own and one of my very dearest, bestest friends Jonnah's 100th posts, we are hosting a giveaway. We wanted something that was going to reflect our own personalities as well as being crazy awesome, so we came up with something that is pretty much going to knock your socks off. ;)

Are you ready for it?

{Hold your breath.}

 

 

 

 

 

 

{this is paperback}

 

 

I know you are all screaming at the top of your lungs or hyperventilating on the floor, so here are the rules for entering.

 

Just to be clear..... ALL three are going to ONE winner!


Rules:
1. Follow Merrie Melodies {Jonnah}
2. Follow My Unicorn Has Wings {Me}
3. Find your favorite post {on both blogs} from 2012 and leave a comment saying why it is your favorite.

All of the above rules are for ONE entry.

For those of you who really want a chance of getting this prize, you can earn one extra entry by following me and Jonnah on Pinterest. Be sure to let us know you've done it. My button is on the side of the blog and hers is linked to her own blog.

AND for you really hard core strategists, you can get one more entry for sharing the giveaway on you blog and posting the link in a comment. You get an extra entry up to once a day by sharing the giveaway again and giving us the link for each time and each day. Make sure you add each of our blog buttons in addition to the pics of the giveaway items:

 

   

 

This giveaway is open internationally. {Hurrah!}

It starts today, and we will announce the winner on Sunday the 24th... My one year anniversary!!  ~_* {Could things have been better?}

This giveaway is only going to last a week, so be sure to spread the word and pile up your stocks!!! You're going to need them. :D

 

Dancing in the Rain...

Such a downpour we had today... It was wondrous.

I used to dislike the rain. We come from Oregon, where a good 7 months of the year is taken up with clouds and rain and deary skies. Everything is sad and droopy, and very, very wet.

But today I have a new appreciation of the rain. Or perhaps a renewed look at it.

Rain can be beautiful. It calls out a brilliance in things that is not to be found in the bleaching sunshine. It adds dazzling sparkles to otherwise faded leaves. It ripples a friendless pond with tenderness and fun. It slides down a window pain, adding a new dimension to life. You see things as you have never seen them before.

On that note, I have been making some discoveries. Some good, some bad.



I am not so good with putting words together with my tongue. When I speak, everything comes out all a jumble. I say things I do not mean or do not even yet understand myself and feel so foolish. I put words together that don't fit and use phrases in ways that the world does not...and forget that it means somethings so different than I intended.

Just Friday night I laughingly said I was eating Starbursts to get sugar in my blood. I meant I needed energy. I was worn out. It had been a long day. But that is not what that phrase means in this society...and I stuck my foot in my mouth. Again.

Oh, how many times can I think of that I have said what I should not or did not mean to. How many things have flown out of my mouth that were not what I wanted. Or intended. I am not good with words. I feel like Minnie in Lark Rise to Candleford. Always saying the wrong things... In my mind I can meld them together and speak them so eloquently. But when I am standing before a person, it comes down to one thing and I have finally discovered what it is.

It is this deep nervousness that bubbles up inside me, as if what I am about to say does not matter to the person I am saying it to. It goes back to that fear of people which I have spoken of before. Or rather, I called it my desire to be a "people pleaser". In reality, it is this. A fear of  people. Of what they feel. Of what they will say. Of what they care about. Of whether or not they want...me.



I need people. I want people to approve of me. And so I speak in haste, as if to assure myself that what I say does mean something. As if the faster I can pour out my words the more value they have.

What stupidity!

I have come to the decision to stop. I have always enjoyed "speaking". I am not a chatterer. But I have a sprightly personality and I enjoy laughing and talking together with friends. I can hold a conversation with a shy person. And I can listen to a chatterbox.

Still, I am always afraid. That my words are forgotten. Unheard. Unwanted. And so I speak, so quickly, so urgently.

And my words...they mean nothing. They are thoughtless. They are hasty. Oh, how I regret them the moment they have flown!

So I have come to a new impasse, a new moment in life. A new change.

I am going to try to stop. I am going try to think. I am going try to wait. Wait for that moment when I know my words are needed, know they are useful, appreciated. Not only to others. But for myself. I am tired of always feeling a fool for what I have said. What I have muddled up. Because I am talking too fast. I am going to slow down. Listen. And speak when it is time...

I hate frivolous conversations. I hate talking about nothing, about things that don't matter. I hate feeling awkward when everyone is talking about things I don't understand {which is a lot} or laughing about things I don't care about.

I am strange. I admit it. There are a lot of things modern teenagers find so glorious that I could care less about. I am not huge into pop music or most "modern" music. In fact, I have heard very little of it. I do not know actors or actresses and don't "fangirl" anything. I don't rave over cloths or fashion or styles. I have watched very few movies, even popular ones. Or if I've seen them...it would be, oh, when I was ten or so...and I can't remember them.

I don't hate these things. I don't hate people that like {or even love} these things. But I can't share in their excitement and wonder. I can't share their conversations. It is embarrassing. And I feel so left out. So...stupid. Or strange.

I know that is not true. But it is a little true. {Er, the strange part, at least. My ACT score would argue the stupid part. ~_*} I DON'T care for these things. And who doesn't?

I don't know any other girl like this. In fact, sometimes I feel much more like a boy than a girl. I am a Daddy's girl through and through. There are reasons for that, reasons that are hard to admit, that hurt. But they have shaped me into who I am.

And who I am is not something I am afraid of. I like what I am. I like not going crazy over cute boys. I like not not caring if I tear my shirt or grass-stain my jeans or mess my hair. I like not being overly emotional.

It is a decision I have made. But so few people understand it. So few people know it. So few people want to.



Yes, I am different. And people don't know what to make of it. Or me.

And my mixed up tongue only proves to them that there is nothing but bizarre thoughts in my head. I don't make any sense. To anyone. How could anyone make sense of me? Why would anyone want to? I don't know.

But perhaps that is not for me to figure out. What I am is what I want to be. What I am.

Time...

Eeeek! I feel like I have no time anymore. I know, here I am writing out a blog post. But I feel like my insides are jumping out screaming at me for taking a moment to do it. I have so much to do. My job takes up half my day now {really a good thing! I LOVE my job} and then I have home chores and my book and MY business and friends to email and books to read and piano to practice and ...oh ... the list goes on and on and on.

Ok, you really did not want to know about all of that.

We finally have some sunshine. It is not warm, mind you, but it is sun. It makes me happy because it hints of warm days to come, when I can run and spend hours outside. I like to read outside. It is really pretty, with the sun beaming down on me and birds singing in the sky and trees gently blowing in the breeze.... yeah, I like to read outside.

I am excited because we are going to have a bunch of friends out to our house in a couple weekends and it is going to be super uber awesome. We are going to play volleyball and hang out and just have fun.


God asks a lot from us. He asks us to trust Him, to love Him, to obey Him. But He has done so much for us, I don't know how I could not want to do these things. I want to please Him with my whole heart. Sometimes I struggle with knowing how to do His will. What choices do I make that are actually from Him? Do I live my life the way He wants me to? Each moment is an opportunity to love and glorify Him through my life. Do I take them? I don't know. I ponder so much in my heart. Life is a beautiful thing. There are so many ways to live. But somehow, the one that will mean the most to us is tucked inside His hand. I want to have that one.



Sometimes I feel like I have a pretty bland, repetitive personality.

And I wonder what I am like to other people. That's kind of a strange thought, isn't it. Have you ever wondered how other people see you? LOL! Actually, that thought makes me laugh.

I like people with great personalities. They are pretty awesome. All my friends have incredible personalities!!

Enough of this rambling, I have things to do. Have a great day, my dears!