I was a little scared, but it turned out okay.

A few years ago, I heard a woman say that she prayed one year to become organized. It was the worst year of her life. The next year she prayed for organized friends and things have been great ever since. Well, yesterday, my organized friends, Mandie and Aimee came to visit. Mr. Bean and Filbert took off with the kids and I was left to fend for myself against the organizational push. Three rooms were tackled and defeated. Mandie made me get rid of my wedding shoes and then even after that she said I had get rid of at least one more pair, but preferably three pairs. (This is when it got scary.) (This is also when the term Nazi entered the conversation.) (In my defense, it was actually Mandie that said it.) (I just quietly agreed.)

After about 3 hours, 3 rooms were clean and organized, except for a couple of piles of Filbert's stuff in our bedroom. I even went a little further after and Aimee and the Nazi Mandie left. My entire fabric stash is organized and stored on a book shelf. Yay me!

And Yay for Organized Friends!

Kick, Crunch, Snap

Today's afternoon with our friend Aimee:

Button the coat.

Strap on the hat.

Kick a ball.

Crunch leaves.

Snap the sticks.

Run across the lawn.

Giggle uncontrollably.

Play hide-and-seek.

Enjoying the fall weather with String Bean.

Culinary Tips

I am less than a master in the kitchen. I have few skills. Just ask Mr. Bean or my brother-in-law about "The Great Pancake Incident." Or, ask Mr. Bean how he "enjoyed" my meatloaf this week.

I just cut up a plethora of fruit and vegetables (with Mr. Bean's help) for a welcome home party for my friend Aimee. Here's where I need your tips. The damage is already done, but for future reference, how do you cut cauliflower without mangling it into little bits? I'd be happy to hear your tips on that one.

I put Mr. Bean in charge of the strawberries and oranges. They turned out fine. I've done broccoli and peppers a million times. We bought baby carrots so they required no preparation. (That's my kind of cooking!)

I must say I did a fantastic job on the celery. I think my mom must have made celery a lot as a kid because I had flashbacks to watching her cut celery the whole time I was doing it. I felt completely at ease as I sliced my way through that vegetable.

Share you cauliflower tips. And while you're at it, I'll take your meatloaf and pancake tips, too.

Welcome Home!

We recently returned from vacation. There is nothing like walking in the front door of your home after having been away for awhile. I love to use my own bathroom, sleep in my own bed and know where everything is in my home.

My friend, Aimee, has been gone for a year in Israel. She's been teaching there and comes back tomorrow! I have spent a few summers overseas and remember coming back to America. Simple things like peanut butter and jelly sandwiches gave me the warm fuzzies. I can't imagine how nice it will be to return home after a year of being away.

What do you like best about coming home?

Happy Thanksgiving!

Amy already wrote about what she's thankful for this year. I thought I'd take my turn and make a list of all the things that I am thankful for in 2008.

• String Bean. She's a constant source of joy and my love for her gives me a small glimpse of God's great love for me.
• Mr. Bean. I know I am a lucky woman to have a man who cooks, cleans, does laundry and chauffeurs us around. My friend Amy (the other Amy) reminds me of this on occasion. She's right. I'm lucky and thankful for him not because he's my husband or because of the things he does for me, but because of who he is.
  
• Marriage. Having a guy like Mr. Bean has made marriage such a wonderful experience. I'm more in love with him now (6 years after our wedding day) than ever. Not only do I have a great guy. I have a great marriage.
  
• Met needs. With the economy in the toilet, I am constantly reminded that having food on our table, all our bills paid, and money to go to Starbucks occasionally while staying out of credit card debt is truly something to be thankful for. *Knocking on wood that our cars (that are paid off!!!) continue to be healthy.*
  
• Employment. Mr. Bean and I both love our jobs. Mr. Bean is living the dream having a job he looks forward to every day. My job is not always exciting. It is rarely glamorous. However, the people I work with are fantastic and I enjoy having the flexibility to work from home occasionally, flex my hours as I need to, have my summers off, and do a variety of work. I also enjoy the freedom Mr. Bean has given me to keep my pinky toe in the workforce (I only work 12 hours a week during the school year). I have much respect for moms who are able to stay sane and be stay-at-home moms 100% of the time. I'm at 92% and that's about my limit to keep from going insane. Mr. Bean saw that I was hard wired differently than other women and would be a better mom by having some adult time every week. Thanks, Mr. Bean.
• Friendship. This year I've struggled with friendships. It is quite a long story, which I won't bore you with. Here are a couple highlights: My friend Aimee moved to Jerusalem which was sad for me, but with her moving it brought me closer to my co-blogger, Amy and the other Amy. All my friends are named Amy. I met a visitor at church on Sunday named Amy. Is it wrong that I immediately thought, "Oh, this girl could be a great friend to me!" I've also had the chance to reconnect with some old friends this year (Thanks, Facebook!) and look forward to rekindling those relationships.
• Family. My in-laws live in town right now (usually they are all the way over in Hawaii). It has been so great to have them in the area (for reasons other than free babysitting, too). My parents have been able to visit a lot this year. I think it has something to do with String Bean, but I'll pretend they just want to see me. We've also been able to connect with our cousins this year (Thanks, again, Facebook!) and have felt their love. It has been a good year for family.
  

There are lots of other things I'm thankful for, but these are the big ones. You are probably tired of reading this post now and you have better things to eat do. Happy Thanksgiving everyone! I hope you all enjoy your turkey (or tofurkey) and the love and fellowship of friends and family today and (hopefully) this weekend!