Author: Kathleen

Inspiration For Life
I stayed with my best friend Becca in Kansas this past weekend, and she inspired me in so many different ways. It was the first time I saw her new house in its mostly-finished state. The last time I was there, last year, they hadn’t moved in yet and it was kind of a wreck. They did all the work on it themselves and now it’s adorable. Talking to her about it really inspired me to get working on my own house again, which I haven’t done a thing for in months.

Some ideas I have for the house:
- Some open shelving in the kitchen, filled with dishes, cute baskets of produce, and spices in mismatched glass jars
- Plants all over the place
- Tear down the outdated vanity in the half bathroom and put in a pedestal sink
- Replace the linoleum with tile throughout, and do it ourselves
- Make my own Roman shades
The inspiration isn’t just limited to home decor. For an anniversary gift, Becca gave me the cookbook More-with-Less: Suggestions by Mennonites on how to eat better and consume less of the world’s limited food resources. She explained to me that all the recipes use mostly basic ingredients that are healthy and can be bought in bulk. It stresses unprocessed foods and teaches you how to make some things yourself that you might be used to buying pre-packaged. While we were there Becca made some of the dishes and I was impressed with how good they were. So now I really want to get back on my cooking kick, and in a healthy, world-conscious way.

Finally, I noticed that Becca uses a lot of organic, fair-trade, local products, which is something I have wanted to transition into doing for awhile now. I have noticed that the older I get, the more hippie I become, except without the drugs or political activism. :) I’m not sure how my conservative husband feels about that, but I think he’ll be happy when he sees how I can save us money without compromising on quality and do good to ourselves and the environment at the same time!

Basically I want to be a perfect little homemaker, but unfortunately that’s a hard goal to reach having a demanding full-time job. It’s an ongoing battle to balance the two, but at least now I have some inspiration to keep me going!
October 13, 2009
#57. Take David To Tabor’s Homecoming

In case you didn’t know, before I became a nurse I graduated with a BA in youth ministry and philosophy from a small school in Kansas called Tabor College. Now when I say it’s a small school, I mean small. Smaller than your small school. Like, 500 people small. And the town? 3000 people, no stoplight. A rotating selection of restaurants that can never stay in business long. In the middle of nowhere, surrounded by farmland. In other words, a lot different than Houston.

My experience at Tabor was amazing, and it really shaped me as a person. Not to mention a couple of my very best friends still live in the area. When I tell people that I go to my college homecoming every year, they are kind of confused. But since the school was so small, I pretty much knew everyone, and it’s the perfect excuse to visit friends. I didn’t get to go last year because I was a little busy getting married, but this year I wanted to take David so he can understand a little more of why I am who I am.

I forgot my camera, so I only took a few token pictures with my iPhone. We stayed with my best friend Becca, her husband Micah, and their one-year-old boy Eli, who is adorable.

We watched Tabor get their butts kicked in football, 79-6, but at least it was in a brand new stadium.

Did I mention that it was COLD? I promise I checked the weather before we left, and I saw 40’s. I was forgetting that Kansas is a very windy place, not to mention that hello? Forty degrees is very cold in the first place! All I packed was a heavy sweater, so I had to bum extra gear off Becca. And David? Well, I’ll show you how he coped:

That’s Becca’s hat, a wool blanket, and a blanket/poncho combo. In his words, “I haven’t been this cold in years.”

We spent most of our time just socializing, and it was lovely. Staying with Becca inspired me in so many ways, and I’ll share those things with you soon. But for now, one more item checked off the list!

October 12, 2009
San Antonio, The Rest Of The Story

So anyway, I kind of got carried away with the penguins there, but David and I actually did do other things in San Antonio other than obsess over sea animals.

We stayed in this lovely bed and breakfast, the King William Manor, which I highly recommend to anyone:

I can’t tell you enough how much I loved staying in a bed and breakfast instead of a hotel. I feel like I can’t go back now! I loved how homey it felt. I loved having a host. I loved that each room was unique. I loved being served breakfast in the morning at whatever time I asked. It was just adorable.

On our one full day in San Antonio we spent a lot of time walking around downtown and the Riverwalk. We put a lot more miles on the pedometer, and were so exhausted that we spent the late afternoon relaxing in our room, taking naps, reading, and watching football. Then we headed back out in the evening.

Dorky picture in front of the Alamo.

Apparently San Antonio is one of the most haunted cities in America, so we went on this thing called a ghost tour. Our tour guide led us around to different places in downtown and told us about the creepy things that happened there and the rumors of hauntings. We were also encouraged to hunt for ghosts on our own. We even got ghost hunting equipment.

Yes, I mean real equipment. That rod in my left hand is a dowsing rod. This thing is freaky. You can hold it in your hand and ask it to point to something, AND IT WILL. At first I thought our tour guide was just some sort of magician. But no. We each got to use one, and IT IS FOR REAL. I even asked it to spin in circles, and it did so, OF ITS OWN VOLITION. The tour guide says it responds to energy, including mental energy. So when we concentrated it would do what we asked, and then as soon as we let the thought slip from our minds it went back to the center. Crazy, I tell you!

After sadly checking out of our B&B on Sunday, we stopped at the Natural Bridge Caverns on our way home to explore some caves. Once again we were suckered into buying the picture they took of us.

The trip was a complete success. We had a blast. (And on an unrelated note, our new budget begins next month.)

October 6, 2009
SeaWorld, But Most Importantly, PENGUINS

Y’all, I had a good weekend. I mean, it was really good. Check it out:

DAY ONE

We woke up at 5:30 a.m. and left the house a little after 7 a.m. On the way I made David pull over so I could get coffee about an hour outside of San Antonio. I wonder when I became that kind of coffee drinker? (Incidentally, who knew Valero has such good cappuccinos?) We parked at SeaWorld and walked to the gate only to be told to come back when I wasn’t trying to sneak pepper spray into the park. When we finally made it inside, the first thing we did was go on a ride. I love roller coasters, and although they make David nervous he was game. But by the time we got inside the cart he was wondering what on earth he was thinking. Poor guy was miserable, and I have the picture to prove it:

Yes, we paid almost $13 for this picture, and I think it’s worth every penny. Everyone else is the picture of happiness–they should put us on an advertisement–and David looks like he’s undergoing surgery without anesthesia. Can you believe that after this I convinced him to ride it a second time?

Next we saw the Shamu show “Believe”, and now I am head over heels in love with that whale. I almost cried from sheer joy at the end. But seriously, it is amazing what they can train those animals to do. After another roller coaster left us both feeling dizzy and a little nauseated, we decided to stop for lunch. We had to eat quick because OMG WE SIGNED UP FOR AN UP CLOSE PENGUIN ENCOUNTER!!! I have loved penguins since I was a little kid, and I have always wanted to pet one. When I found out that it was possible to do this I immediately made it one of my 101 goals. We got to go behind the scenes of the exhibit, see the penguins in their “habitat”, learn a bit more about them, and finally MEET ONE!

I’M PETTING A PENGUIN!

How cute is David’s face? He’s like a little boy!

This was totally the highlight of the day (and it better’ve been at $30 a person). But the fun did not end there, oh no. David bought a tray of three fish for $5 to feed the dolphins. He attempted to joke with the man selling them about what a moneymaker it was, but the man was not amused. In fact, he gave us a condescending look and said, “It helps the animals.” Sure, sure. We also saw the shark exhibit, went to another two shows, and walked through the two “haunted” attractions when they opened, but it was still light outside so they weren’t very scary.

At the end of the day we had walked 9.23 miles (says my pedometer) and my feet were killing me because I wore some cheap Old Navy flip flops, and David’s hips were killing him because, well, he has a better excuse than I do. I highly recommend going to SeaWorld if you get the chance!

I’ll write about the rest of our trip tomorrow, but I must get myself to bed right now. If you’re interested, you can see some of my video clips from the weekend on Vimeo and the rest of my pictures (and get a sneak peek!) on Flickr.

October 5, 2009
A Renewal Of Vows

This was intended to be published on October 3, our actual anniversary. A combination of a lack of Internet access and foresight prevented that from happening, so here it is, a little late.

***

I, Kathleen, take you, David, to be my husband, to have and to hold from this day forward; I promise to nudge you in the morning when your alarm goes off the first time, as well as when it goes off the thirtieth time, and I’ll only give you a little bit of a hard time about it. I promise to forcibly get you out of bed, if needed, so that you won’t be late for work, because I know that even though you may seem upset about it at the time, you will thank me for it later.

I vow to never sneak any onions into anything I cook, thinking that you won’t notice. Moreover, I vow to order my meals without onions if we’re out at a restaurant and I’m getting something you might want to try. I vow to do the laundry, the ironing, and to always put a new bag in the trash can, because I know how you hate those chores. And I vow to always thank you when you take the trash out, do the dishes, or clean your side of the bathroom.

I solemnly swear to stop what I’m doing when you come home from work and give you the attention that you deserve, because you are more important to me than any book, chore, website, or TV show. I swear to never hang up the phone, leave the house, or get on a plane without telling you I love you first. I swear to put my head on your shoulder while we’re listening to the sermon during church. I swear to hold your hand or your arm while we’re walking in public. I swear to put my arm around you in bed every night, but I also swear that I won’t get my feelings hurt when you tell me you’re too hot for that.

I vow to listen when you’re talking, and to make every attempt to be interested in politics, your latest true crime book, or whatever sports team you’re currently obsessed with, and, failing that, I will at least pretend to be. I vow to give you proper praise when you save us ten dollars by using the CVS cash you’ve earned. I vow to tell you as often as possible what an amazing man I think you are, and that out of the six billion people in the world, you’re my favorite one.

Above all else, I promise to always stick up for you, to fight for you, to go to bed and wake up next to you, to put your interests above my own, and to ask for forgiveness when I don’t. I promise to do my best to make this marriage the best part of our lives, and I promise I will be there for you for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, until we are parted by death. This is my solemn vow.

***

This post inspired by Holly at Nothing But Bonfires, for whom I have an unrequited blog love.

October 4, 2009