Winter Cold Hits Chrissy

Oh how true it really is...I tried to bulldoze through the cold season, but low and behold...I have a winter cold...it's effecting my breathing, sleeping and talking. For those blessed souls that have had to talk to me, I apologize for the rumbled, scratchy words. I still am trying to talk, but I think it's getting harder to decipher my words for those listening. I pray that you are not hit with this winter cold, because it is not fun.

I hope that you all have a very Merry Christmas over the next 2 - 5 days or however long you have to spend them. A key thing to remember is this...life gives us many festive people for us to watch or communicate with...praise God that we have those people with us today. Enjoy every minute with your loved ones and close friends! It's a true blessing for me to have you as a friend! Love you!

How to Live Life to the Fullest

How to Live Life to the Fullest - Source found at http://www.wikihow.com/Live-Life-to-the-Fullest
Life is short, and everyone should live life to the fullest! You only get one chance to live. Make it the best. Each person lives differently, so make the spotlights shine on your life!

1. Make a list of things you want to do before a certain birthday. For example, list thirty things you want to do before you turn thirty. Your list can be made up of places to visit, people to meet or befriend, skills to acquire, or just fun things to do. This way, you have some goals to aim at, and you can keep track of what you have done and what you still want to do.
2. Make a to-do list or a schedule every day! Don't just lay around all day without painting the fence, visiting Aunt Mary Ann, or finally taking that walk to the park. Have fun!
3. Remember "Carpe Diem" or "seize the day." - Live life in the moment. The only thing that is assured in life is this moment and death. So cherish every moment of life and make it worthwhile.
4. Try making life better for the less fortunate people in the world. They could be anyone, from an orphan in Africa to a pauper in Calcutta. Some dollars less in your account will not make a significant difference to you but will make an impact on someone's life. These are the deeds that make you happy in reality, knowing that you have made a difference.
5. Be comfortable with yourself. Love and accept yourself, even if others don't. Know who you are. You will naturally become an outgoing person if you can do this. Also, have an internal locus of control (an internal locus of control implies the belief that one is largely in control of the things that happen to her/him), meaning be who you are and stay true no matter the situation. Be strong and continue to grow your entire life.
6. Accept other people, even if they're different. Really different. You don't have to like everyone, just show acceptance and tolerance and you'll be cool with everyone (extremely important in connections later on). Also understand not everyone has your world view, thinks like you, or has the same values. But one thing everyone does want is to be treated kindly. You can't judge anyone else because you don't know what that person has been through and how it's affected them. Not everyone reacts to the same situations the same way. Some have more tolerance than others. Judging anyone is purely to organize your own little world into making a little more sense.
7. Find a purpose or meaning to your life. Whether that be a cause to help the world, religion, or just any kind of worthwhile goal (world domination only if you'll treat the world right).
8. Accept death. Yes, it can be scary. But it's going to happen, one day you will die. Let it echo through you, and you can begin to appreciate life. Trust you will be okay. Trust it or you'll go crazy.Live your life with the motto " If I die now I die happy ." Wouldn't it be nice if supposedly you would die now to know that many people would attend your funeral because you've been a great person ?
9. Stop caring what other people think about you. If you've done the previous step, then this one should be easy. Just apply the faith and trust in the fact that you will die someday, to you, and the fact that you were meant to be yourself no matter what other people say.

Motto From An E-mail

This was at the end of a hilarious e-mail about eating over the holidays. I decided only to post the motto, because being a somewhat health nut...I couldn't bear to put the not so good advice on my blog. I did love the motto at the end. It paints a hilarious picture in my head.

"Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, chocolate in one hand, body thoroughly used up, totally worn out and screaming "WOO HOO what a ride!"

Merry Christmas - White Christmas

My friend Jennifer sends me the neatest holiday cards online. Click on the website below to hear A White Christmas. I know I haven't been able to read everybody's blogs lately, I promise I will get better.

http://www.aroundmd.com/whitechristmas/

WHY WOMEN CAN'T SLEEP

WHY WOMEN CAN'T SLEEP Have you ever wondered how a woman's brain works? Well....it's finally explained here in one, easy-to-understand illustration (in the e-mail sent to me, the pic is animated):



















Every one of those little blue balls is a thought about something that needs to be done, a decision or a problem that needs to be solved. A man, only has 2 balls and they consume all his thoughts.

Okay, so this might be a little harsh for the men out there. One of my friends sent this to me. I thought it was hilarious. Since I haven't had time to post past pics, I thought I'd at least get a new post up. Sorry to all my buddies out there. I do know the woman's brain has a lot going on. At least, my brain does...too much multi-tasking. I heard it can kill brain cells! :) Hope all is going well. I had my second run last night. It felt so much better than last Thursdays run, which was my first day back officially. Boy have I missed running!

Trail Zombie Tagged Me - Crazy 8's

Crazy Eights!
Crazy Eights I have been tagged in the Crazy Eights game by Ken aka T Z....it was back in November, but I just read it today! :) Sorry for being a bum!

8 shows I love to watch (haha...I definitely have more than 8)

1. The Mentalist
2. The Big Bang Theory
3. The Office
4. Boston Legal
5. Pushing Daisies
6. Lost
7. Private Practice
8. Grey's Anatomy

8 places I love to eat

1. Tei Kei's (love the coconut chicken sushi)
2. PF Chang's (it's pushing it, used to be my all time fav)
3. Brio's (Kansas City, KS & Allen, TX)
4. Los Cabos
5. Bad Brad's
6. Panera
7. Quizno's
8. The Smoothie King

8 things I did yesterday

1. Trouble shooting problems at work
2. worked on the Jan/Feb/March Clover Connection Newsletter
3. attend the 2008 Tulsa County OHCE Holiday Luncheon
4. blogged
5. prayed a lot...my brother-in-law was in the hospital
6. visited a dear friend in the hospital and sat in the lobby with his family
7. ate really late with hubby at Chili's...nachos and Chocolate Molten Cake...YUMMY
8. like Erin...I had some fun! :)

8 things I look forward to

1. Christmas with family...Leslie and Kyle are coming home for a visit!
2. Bowl Game...traveling with my hubby to San Diego, CA...hopefully
3. Seeing my best friends on our trip to Cali
4. GETTING BACK TO RUNNING with my peeps...FINALLY....I found out TODAY (12.4.08) from my Doctor's office that I am clear to start out slow, then build up! :) Half Marathon in April...here I come!
5. GETTING PREGO! It's in the dear Lord's hands!
6. Reading the Christmas story...thank God for sending His son! Happy Birthday, Jesus!
7. Seeing new places I haven't been to!
8. Spring weather!

8 things I love about fall

1. Fall and Spring are the perfect weather seasons for me!
2. TV Shows starting back
3.FOOTBALL
4. Love wearing my boots
5. Gearing up for the holiday season
6. Chili - Michael makes the best chili
7. My mom's homemade chicken and noodles
8. Award Shows

8 things on my wish list

1. an actual injury free year
2. someone to help train for their goal race (I kept this one...because I like it...I'll have to settle with training half marathon goal makers)
3. accomplishing one of my top ten goals to accomplish before 40!
4. a healthy pregnancy and baby! :)
5. people to get along
6. keep up with my life and people
7. grow longer hair
8. to be active and creative

I now tag...
1. Bobby
2. Aunt Tracy
3. Ale
4. Leslie
5. Amy
6. Deon
7. Robin
8. Uncle Dave

2 weeks...really?

Has it really been 2 weeks since I last posted anything? Yes, my friends and family....it unfortunately has. I promise I will be catching up on all your amazing posts. I've already started with a couple of you, beware of me going comment crazy! Since my last post was from my time with my family at Frontier City...which happened on October 25th...I will do a bullet update of my life for those that are interested. I will try to post some pictures (they tell so much) of the events and adventures of November.

• Sunday, October 26th: Fellowship Church's Trunk or Treat Event - Michael and I went all out with our costumes and decorations for the Trunk or Treat. I looked like a man. When you get to see the pictures, you will agree with me! :) It was a blast getting to hand out candy and see the reactions of kids and adults see our lovely attraction. :) We won 1st place, which provided us with two $10 gift cards to Chili's or Macaroni Grill. We've already used one! YUMMY!
• Tuesday, October 28th: SPE Comedy Club Gathering - Though I do not have pictures of this event, we still had a pretty good time. It was my first time to visit a Comedy Club. It was very different, but not horrible. I'm not impressed with the vulgar language. The lady comedian was the best. She only had a couple of bad words, the rest was hilarious.
• Saturday, November 1st: Kiwanis Pancake Breakfast (no pictures). Yes, I am in Kiwanis now! :) I've been a member since the 1st part of October. I am learning so much from my fellow members. We meet once a week on Tuesday, which we are educated with some form of a program. The breakfast was fun to work, especially when I got to see just what it's like to be the volunteer and not the leader....very educational! :)
• Sunday, November 2nd: Early Thanksgiving with the Cooper's - the food was delicious...talk about starting the month off right. I did have to hear about a couple of topics that I do not like, but we managed to deal with it and move on! There are quite a few of us...we are growing in size! I just love getting to be with my family...it's always fun to catch up and relax!
• Saturday, November 8th and Sunday, November 9th: Tulsa County 4-H Youth Officer Leadership Retreat. This is a favorite of my with some of our elite teens. We participate in 4-Wheeling, workshops, business meetings and eating. One of our workshop was watching the OSU VS Texas Tech. The lessons were many in teamwork and the lack of. I really wanted to stop watching, but we persevered and finished it. :)
• Wednesday, November 12th & Thursday, November 13th: ONE CRAZY NIGHT OF FEAR...Michael had to be gone for a Sales School. I had come into the house to get him, but never noticed anything out of the ordinary. When I came home from dropping him off at the airport, I saw tiny pieces of a leaf. I vacuumed before Home Group not thinking too much about it....until after Home Group was over...and noticed that Michael had left the back door unlocked....so remembering the leaf pieces, I freaked out. Come to find out...due to my fear...I had set the alarm wrong...it went off in the middle of the night...I FREAKED OUT...there are no pictures of this event, but I was scared completely out of my mind...screaming bloody murder....Grandpa and Grandma Whitten finally came over about 1 hour from the time the alarm went off...let me tell you...it took half that long just to get Michael called..yelling into his ear. No one came to help me before that...no alarm company called...no neighbor came over...and yes, my crazy self didn't even think to call 911...because I thought the alarm company would...needless to say...I had Grandma and Grandpa Whitten stay with me that night and the next...PRAISE GOD for them! We did get it all figured out...the alarm got fixed...I became more aware that I need to be more prepared...it was nuts. :)
• Friday, November 14th and Saturday, November 15th: Fellowship Church Women's Shopping Retreat. I am so blessed to go to Fellowship Church. The women that attended this retreat were hilarious and fun to be around. I had the extra blessing of riding with Kaye and Jodi. We talked, laughed, cried, prayed, praised and sang. I have some really great photos to share from the trip. I was definitely glad I went on the trip. :) Susan is the reason that I have some pretty awesome hair now...when I get to fix it!
• Sunday, November 16th: Bobby finishing the Route 66 MARATHON - YAY for Bobby! It was the hardest thing I've had to do lately....watch someone else get to finish a marathon. Tears came to my eyes as I watched one after another finish. The feelings rushed over me from my first victory in completing a marathon...it's a feeling that hopefully will never go away! When I saw Bobby finished, I remember him telling me he'd never...yes NEVER do a marathon....he wasn't that crazy...well BOBBY...welcome to the crazy world of running. You ran 26.2 miles...now that is amazing...life is so funny...We switched places this year...I got to spectate while he finished. I'll be ready to start running....I talk to the doctor tomorrow! :) PRAY that I get released! :) I have lots of pics from this....posting soon!
• Saturday, November 23rd: Tulsa County 4-H Share the Fun - "The Wonderful World of 4-H" - Disney characters are always a fabulous idea! I tried to dress up like Anastatia. I felt very pretty in my green dress! Pictures will be posted soon. Following the talent show, I got to eat a delicious, but quick meal with mny friend Jennifer. My sister, niece and nephew went to the movies to watch Madagascar 2...laughed a lot...loved watching the two young ones mesmerized by the cartoon characters. I absolutely love Zebra...Chris Rock's voice is wonderful! :) They all got to stay with me, since Michael was gone yet again...this time hunting. I was sure glad I didn't have to be by myself!
• Wednesday, November 26th & Thursday, November 27th - THANKSGIVING with Michael's sides. We spent the night with mom and Mike at a hotel in Grove. I had a blast. Nan even let me try the inside of the pies before being bakes...now that was perfect. I learned how to play Pitch and a dice game. Thanksgiving night we were with the Whitten's. We played the longest game of chicken foot that I have ever played. Michael and I had bought double 15 dominoes....let's just say almost 5 hours later...we finished the game....one thing great about it....we had homemade biscuits and chocolate gravy! YUMMY
• Friday, November 28th: more Thanksgiving - we had the Miller Thanksgiving at Aunt Tracy and Uncle Dave's...I always love going to their house...very relaxing! We had an alternative Christmas with healthier choices on the food. I'm so thankful for this year's Thanksgiving with all three sites full of family, food and fun.
• Saturday, November 29th: OSU VS OU, Bedlam 2008 - I won't go into great detail...sorry...it was ot fun watching poor sportsmanship...especially when you see that kind of behavior when someone wins...can't people just be happy they won, instead of trying to tear others down...any ways...I prayed really hard that God would help our guys be the best that they can be...he blessed us...yet I should have been more specific...so our best didn't wear us out at the end of the game! :) I'm glad it's over...I'm ready for the Bowl Game...I'm so proud of our 9-3 season....can't be sad over that kind of finish! :) GO POKES
• Sunday, November 30th: Casting Crowns Christmas Concert at BOK - Oh, this was amazing. I got to hang out with my peeps from my Church in Cushing...we had about 50 of us! Michael isn't much of a Christmas Music fan, but he managed to get through it. I was so excited to see Avalon and Michael English...favorites from my past and still today...Casting Crowns was incredible....even though a couple were missing due to having a baby...it happens! :) I missed hanging out with some of my peeps...it was worth it. My mom and dad got to be there. We all went to Spaghetti Warehouse before hand...not my fav to eat at...but I enjoyed the company! :)
• Monday, December 1st: Michael and I's 7th Dating Anniversary - time sure does fly by...7 years since I got to go on a date with my lovely husband...wow...we even went to Spaghetti Warehouse in OKC...which is funny, since I had to eat at Spaghetti Warehouse in Tulsa the day before and the day after our Anniversary...too funny! I took the day off to surprise Michael, but he got my plans changed...he picked me up for lunch at Ollie's...YUMMY, then started his to die for chili for supper....which messed up my surprise...I was going to cook a roast with carrots and potatoes...oh well...next time! :) 7th is heaven! :)
• Tuesday, December 2nd: Kiwanis Christmas Party - Though I had to go without Michael since he was in Arkansas, I had a really good time. All the couples had several stories that cracked me up. I love being in Kiwanis...there's so much wisdom and knowledge to learn. We had a hoot with the White Elephant! I got my first three gifts stolen....oh yes...I was number 1, so it didn't bother me...especially when I knew I'd be the last to steal back a good present! Again, it was at Spaghetti Warehouse...not as bad as I remember, but not my fav.

As you can read, I have been a little busy. This is just some highlights...lots more took place here and there, but I wanted to do the more important ones. I hope everyone had a blissful Thanksgiving. I am so thankful to have you in my life. May God bless you with many more blessings. XO