Don't Mess With a Woman and Her Chocolate!

I AM MAD! Picture this:
All day long, you eat well...All day long you think of the Snickers bar that was carefully placed and hidden on top of the refrigerator...All day long you eat well and think of savoring the chocolate when you get home from work.
You get the idea...right?
So imagine my surprise when I get home and look on top of the refrigerator and find that my chocolate has gone missing....no better yet, it has been EATEN *gasp!
For the next 15 minutes I walk around aimlessly thinking that the lovely and well thought of chocolate just might reappear. I look on the dining room table. I look in the kitchen. I look in the trash can for evidence. . . Nothing.
The husband calls. I come right out and say I AM MAD! He of course asks why. I explain. Sadly I get no remorse...just a nervous laugh.
What have I learned from this experience? Find a better hiding place for the much needed chocolate!

Memorial Day Weekend Part II

What a day!
I am one that loves to sleep in...and we definitely started the day right by sleeping in this morning before grabbing breakfast and hitting the road. It was close to 9:30 by the time we got in the car to head to Cracker Barrel for our yummy morning grub. The only downside was that we were next to a VERY rowdy group of people...and I'm a grump in the morning as it is (although I think I've gotten better about that), so we ate quickly! We went back to the hotel to grab Dit, check out of the hotel, and head down to the southern-most part of Indiana for our Lincoln memorial tour that we had planned.
Enter Lincoln City, IN...the boyhood home of President Abraham Lincoln. Here there is a museum and park area that holds the site where Lincoln's mother is buried as well as a replica of the homestead where he grew up. The Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial was a great place to spend Memorial Day eve, and it was especially nice since I just got finished reading Mary by Janice Cooke Newman. This historical fiction work helped me to really get to know the Lincoln family.
Once we finished with the LBNM, we decided to make a quick trip across the road to the Lincoln State Park to see the Pigeon Baptist Church where Lincoln would have attended and where his sister Sarah is buried. I've taken pictures and will definitely get them up soon.
Dinner was in order after all that walking! We chose Ruby Tuesday and had a nice meal...but I'm still stuffed! We then came back to the hotel...to our lovely room with a jacuzzi ...and I promptly relaxed and pampered myself in the heavenly tub. I must have one someday!
On TV there is a memorial special being aired from D.C. ... and again I'm reminded of what Memorial Day is. I have always loved History, and days like tomorrow really bring out the importance of those who have served our country, and have helped to make this country so great. Abraham Lincoln knew that this country was great...and in his great words:

Photo from Library of Congress collection (Lincoln's First Draft)
The words of Lincoln read: Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth, upon this continent, a new nation, conceived in liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that "all men are created equal."
Tomorrow we are heading to Kentucky for our final Lincoln trip, and then it's home to get ready for the work week.

Memorial Day Weekend Part I

Adam and I have decided to make a quick getaway for the Memorial Day weekend. We knew that we didn't want to spend a ton of money...and with gas prices at almost $4.00, we knew we didn't want to go far. Bloomington, here we come!
I worked this morning (Sat.) and then hurried home with extreme excitement! I simply couldn't wait to get on the road and out of town. I had packed everything the night before and even Ditters knew something was up and that we were heading somewhere.
Adam and I decided to put Dit in the hotel once we got into town, and then find somewhere to eat. We were HUNGRY! We didn't want to do too much backtracking, so we chose something on the way to our "drive" and it just happened to be absolutely delicious. Right by the Monroe County Public Library is an Indian restaurant. I hadn't had Indian food in a very long time, and we can't get Indian in Muncie, so I was glad that's where we decided to go. We started with a Vegetable appetizer of some sort (I can't remember the name of the dish) and it was definitely a great start. I chose the Butter Shrimp as my meal and adam chose a Lamb dish of some sort...a curry I think. It was absolutely scrumptious! We had some garlic and cheese naan on the side to sop up the wonderful curry sauce and then finished off the meal with a small rice pudding. YUMMMMMY! Once we were through, we got back in the car to make our trip through Brown County and the Yellowwood National Forest.
For Adam and I, Bloomington has some great memories for us. When we were first married, Adam started his Doctoral program at IU Bloomington which brought us to the wonderful state of Indiana. We grew together as a couple and Bloomington served us well. I was working as an after-school care worker at a Christian school in town, and was also working a home-based business. This meant that I was home quite a bit. Adam was practicing a lot and going to classes at IU. We didn't have a lot of extra time, but had enough to make a habit of taking evening drives to see deer. We LOVED it! The hills of Bloomington are so beautiful and peaceful that words or pictures just can't do it justice. So, with this Memorial Day weekend ahead of us, we decided to do what we most loved and take a drive to see deer again. I tried to get a few pictures, but they were a bit blurry. I'll see what photoshop can do once I get the chance.
We are now back in the hotel...Ditters is asleep on the couch and both Adam and I are on our computers. It's nice!
Tomorrow, it's off to the Lincoln memorial house...and more updates to come.

My "New" Car...

It was the spring of my senior year in high school. I was getting ready
to graduate (a very exciting time!) and had applied and was accepted to
a college in Houma, LA which was a 45 minute drive from my home. Mom
was working as a single mother driving to three different elementary
school as the music teacher. I knew there was no way I would be able to
get to college unless I carpooled.



Thinking back now...there were ways, I'm sure, that I could have done it...but at the time I thought I needed a car.



Dad and I, since he left, hadn't had that great of a relationship. Our
conversations with each other were few and far between and I always
felt that I was the one initiating everything and keeping the
relationship going (I still feel that way). I was so nervous to ask,
but thought, it couldn't hurt any worse than it already is. The worst case scenario is that he will say no to a car. So,
I asked Dad for a car. I explained the situation very clearly and left
it at that. I think I waited a good 3 weeks or so before he called
again after saying he'd "think about it." Those 3 weeks were the
longest 3 weeks ever! The whole time I was thinking that this would be
the end of mine and my Dad's relationship. But...to my surprise, he
pulled through...more than I ever could have expected.



Dad and Carolyn planned to drive down for my graduation. The final
phone call with him left it open to the imagination...he simply said We'll see what we can do when we get there. I
was perfectly fine with that. They stayed in a hotel in town...and
since I didn't see them often anyway, I had no idea what vehicle they
were driving. The night before graduation, Dad took Ben (my brother)
and I out to dinner (while my poor mom stayed home). We had a great
dinner with good conversation about plans and memories and such. The
mention of a car never came up. Finally, I went home and spent the
night before the BIG DAY.



The graduation ceremony was nice...long...and exciting all in one. I
vaguely remember bits and pieces of the ceremony. Afterwards, the rush
to find family members on the lawn and in the lobby was chaotic, to say
the least...but I found Dad and Carolyn standing by their car as if
they were ready to scoot on out of town. What came next, no one could
have prepared me for! Dad gave me a hug and told me he was proud of me.
I hugged Carolyn too. Then, he handed me the keys. I looked down at the
keys, and then back at him, confused. He said...It's yours. I grinned...and probably started jumping up and down...I don't really remember, but he said take it for a spin. So, there I stood...with my new car... (a toyota camry, 2 door, with a cd player and a sunroof) thinking I'm in total heaven.



To this day, I still have that car. It has been through one wreck (not
my fault), and a hit deer (not one, but two deer running side by
side)...but still runs perfectly fine. The new leather smell has long
gone, and the door handles are a sight to see, but I still consider it
my "new" car (1998-present).