30 Day Blog Challenge / Day 27

Today’s assignment at the 30 Day Blog Challenge is to put your iPod on shuffle and then list the first 10 songs.  This should be fun because I have a very wide range of songs on my iPod.

 1.  Fat Bottomed Girls by Queen
 2.  Forget You by Cee Lo Green
 3.  Secret of Life by James Taylor
 4.  The Man Song by Rodney Carrington
 5.  Sherry Darlin by Bruce Springsteen
 6.  Roll to Me by Del Amitri
 7.  Firework by Katy Perry
 8.  Angry All the Time by Tim McGraw
 9.  Growing Older But Not Up by Jimmy Buffett
10. Horizontal Bop by Bob Seger

Wish I could keep going.  There is some good stuff on there.  We never even got to Frank Sinatra or lady Gaga.  The challenge is almost over, but there is still time to join in.

30 Day Blog Challenge / Day 23 / 20 Facts

Today's 30 Day Blog Challenge assignment is to list 20 facts about myself that you may not know. 

 1.  I am afraid of deep water.
 2.  Because of fact 1, I cannot swim.
 3.  I think the best vacation for anyone is to go to Disney World.  If I could afford it, I would go every year.  As it stands now, I have only been there three times.
 4.  I am 57 years old and have only lived in two houses in my whole life.
 5.  I have lived in the same town my whole life.
 6.  I love photography.
 7.  I am a contributing writer for the website The Sisterhood of the Shrinking Jeans.
 8.  I work best under pressure.
 9.  I fell in love and married my high school sweetheart.  He is the only man I have ever loved.  We have been together for 41 years.
10. If I could have a pet again, it would be another golden retriever.  I loved our dog Jack so much. 
11. If you are my family or friend, I will fight to the death for you.  You can mess with me, but don't mess with my people.
12. I entered my first photography contest.  I didn't win any ribbons, but I tried and I'm proud of that.
13. I work at a preschool and I love it.  I have no plans to retire.
14. After numerous attempts to like it, I have decided that I hate running.  I will not be trying it again.
15. I love to read.  My goal for 2012 is no less than a book a week.
16. Although I love to blog and be on Facebook and Twitter, I am not technologically inclined.  I don't have an ipad or Nook or Kindle or any of the other things that are so popular right now.  I just got my first laptop (used) at Christmas this year from my nephew.
17. I have three beautiful grand kids.  If you visit here at all, you have seen them.
18. I have met James Taylor, Jackson Browne, Dom Deluise, Ali Vincent and Allison Sweeney.  I even got to interview Ali Vincent for the Sisterhood.
19. I enjoy walking and hiking.
20. I have four beautiful daughters that I was once accused of making on a Xerox machine.  They look that much alike.

Those are my 20 facts.  Sorry they couldn't be more interesting. 

30 Day Blog Challenge / Day 16

Todays 30 Day Blog Challenge post is to post a picture of yourself and your family.

Here we are!

I am blessed to have a large family that will still be growing as the years go on. Dick and I have been married for 38 1/2 years. We have four lovely daughters. Cindy just turned 37 and is married to Ryan. She is a school teacher. Kate and Sarah are 28 and are twins. Kate is a bank teller and is married to Mark. Sarah is a stay at home mom of three after working as a cosmetologist. She is married to Nick. Abby is 24 and also a school teacher. She and Myles have been together for six years. Marriage isn't too far down the road.

I have three of the most adorable grand kids that you will ever meet. Natalie is five and in preschool. Lizzy is three and mommy's little helper. Our only grandson Jack will be 2 in April. Having a boy in the family after all these girls is a whole new experience.

So that is my family and I. We are a pretty special group of 13 and not an unlucky one in the bunch.

30 Day Blog Challenge / Day 14

Today's assignment at the 30 Day Blog Challenge was to name your favorite television addiction and why. I watch very little TV, so it was pretty easy to pick. The one show that I make a point of seeing each week is.........

GREY'S ANATOMY

I started watching Grey's Anatomy very early on. I just sicked me in and kept me there. I admit that some of the story lines are kind of stupid, but some of the moments are awesome.

I think my very favorite is the two hour episode with the shooter who was after the chief, but shooting others as he looked for him. I knew it was a television show, but I had to keep reminding myself to breathe. I was also impressed with this past week's episode with the accident with the ambulance. I admit that it hadn't been on for so many weeks that I forgot how it ended, but it only took seconds to remember.

I used to watch it with friends every Thursday night, but we haven't been doing that this year. I'm not quite sure why. I'll have to check into that. Grey's Anatomy is great show. It has suspense, humor, love and heart stopping moments. You will laugh just as easily as you cry at this show. I love it. Pure and simple.

30 Day Blog Challenge / Day 13

Today's blog prompt from the 30 Day Blog Challenge is to name your favorite musician and why he is. Piece of cake, folks.

I love Bob Seger. I have loved him since I was a teenager. Everyone who knows me knows that I love Bob Seger. I love his voice. I love his music. I have seen him more times in concert than I can count. Isn't he beautiful!?!?
The last time I saw him in concert was May of 2011. Two daughters, a son-in-law, a brother-in-law, a hubby and I made the trip into Chicago to see him and hear him and the Silver Bullet Band. As always, it was an amazing concert. His voice is still clear and strong and sexy. That in itself is amazing because he is 67 years old now.

There is a running joke in my family that Bob is the father of my children. My husband takes this well and even joins in the fun. When we were planning the wedding of of our first daughter to get married and the bills started to come in, my husband told her that it was time to call her real dad.
Bob never changes. He still has the same two signature moves on stage. He can belt out a tune like nobody else. To quote one of his song titles, he's "Still the Same".

Well....kind of!

You Capture / Morning

I just couldn't think outside of the box of this assignment.

I tried, but it just didn't happen.

These are my breakfast choices these days with my new commitment to healthy eating.
These are the tools of the trade that make me not scarey to the preschoolers.

But...this was my very favorite thing this week before I went to work.

Head over to Beth's. I bet lots people who had better ideas for morning than I did.

30 Day Blog Challenge / Day 8

Today's assignment at the 30 Day Blog Challenge is to post a song and a photo to match your mood. Lucky for all of you, I am in a pretty good mood today.
I have been in love with James Taylor since I was a teenager. His music can calm me or inspire me. He always makes me feel like things are going to be okay. I picked "The Secret of Life" for my song today. (Sorry the song is so far down this post)

I spent the morning with my hubby. Nothing extra special, just some grocery shopping. But, I was happy and we talked about all kinds of things, but it seems like we always at some point, end up talking about these three adorable grand children up there. One thing that I want for them is to really know the secret of life. It's not about how many things you have or what kind of house you live in. It's about the people in your life and enjoying the time you spend with them.

If you listen to the song and read along with the words, you'll see what I mean. My favorite line is "The secret of life is enjoying the passage of time". I want Natalie, Lizzy and Jack to enjoy their life. I want them to not be worried about keeping up with other people and worrying that they might not have the same things. It doesn't matter. One of my favorite quotes is "The most important things in life aren't things".

The people in your life are the most important thing you have. Everything else could be gone tomorrow, but people will stay by you. If you pick them well, you will never have to worry about them leaving you. I have been blessed with some truly wonderful people in my life. I hope you have too.

30 Day Blog Challenge / Day 7

Today's assignment at the 30 Day Blog Challenge was your dream wedding. I don't mean to sound like a Pollyanna, but I had the dream wedding.

I got to be the princess and I married the prince.

I'm sorry I can't give you more pictures, but my scanner is broken, so I can't get them in the computer. I pulled this picture from a past blog post.

It was September 8, 1973. It was a beautiful sunny day with just the right temperature. A little warm, but nothing too hot and humid. Believe it or not, I was 18 years old and my hubby was 21. When I think back now, I can't believe I got married that young. Also looking back now, I wouldn't change a thing.

We got married at my family church. My mom and dad were even married there. It was a beautiful ceremony and as we stood in the back of the church waiting to walk down the aisle, my dad asked if I was sure I wanted to do this. He said we could just as easily walk out the door as walk down the aisle. I said I was sure and up we went.

One of the most memorable moments of that day was after the wedding and we were coming out of the church. It was just our luck that our wedding day was the day picked for the old YMCA to be torn down across the street. We walked out of the church and stopped in the doorway and kissed and down came the building. It was really pretty awesome.

Back in the early 70's, the parents pretty much planned the wedding. My parents were Polish, so we had a Polish wedding. If you have never been to one, they are the best. Great food, a polka band and a great time. I loved every minute of it and would love to have had it all on video like they do today.

So yeah, I had my dream wedding and I wouldn't have changed a thing!

The 30 Day Challenge / Day 6

Today's assignment is to post a picture of the animal you'd love to keep as a pet. If I could keep any animal for a pet it would be a penguin. I love them. They are adorable and funny. We went to the aquarium in October and I had a blast just sitting and watching them with the grand kids. Yes, I'd pick a penguin!!

The 30 Day Challenge / Day 5

Today's assignment was to post a picture of ourselves from two years ago. This is my daughter Sarah and I at her baby shower. My first and only grandson Jack would be born just a few weeks later. I am the person who always is behind the camera, so it is rare for there to be a picture of me in front of the camera. Usually if there is, I am with someone else and that is just fine with me

You Capture / 10 Best of 2011

These are my 10 best of 2011 in no particular order.

The Gary Air Show.
The view from the highest freakin dune at the Indiana Dunes State Park.
The Dolphin show at the Shedd Aquarium.

Jack and poppa checking out the store windows as they wait for Santa to come in the parade. I especially love Jack's reflection in the window.

My full moon picture that I have no idea how the other thing got in there. What is it? A reflectionof the moon. A random planet? Anyone??

The best buddies you could ever find.

The beach in New Buffalo, Michigan on a calm December day.

The river in Chicago as I ran by to catch the train.

The fireworks outside my daughters door on New Year's Eve

The sweetest, cutest, most adorable three children you will ever meet. Spoken like a true grammy, right?

I can't wait to see all the other great shots of 2011 over at Beth's.

30 Day Blog Challenge / Day 4

Today's assignment is to post a picture of your best friend.

This is Vickie and I. This was at the end of her family reunion day, so neither of us is looking all that great. I had some better pictures of us, but they were in the files in my old computer that crashed and I had nothing backed up (I'll never make that mistake again!).

Vickie is the best friend a person could ask for. She would do absolutely anything for you with no questions asked. Our girls all grew up together and are best friends to this day. There are times that I think she remembers more about my kids childhood than I do.

Vickie is fighting cancer with a will and spirit that I can only hope to have one day. She lives each day to the fullest and never once have I ever heard her ask "why me?". She is truly the best person I know. I love her like a sister with all my heart.

The 30 Day Blog Challenge / Day 3

Day 3 of the 30 Day Challenge was just too easy. They asked me what was my favorite store. I didn't have to think a minute about that. There she is, folks...........
I have been a huge fan of Kohl's since they opened a store in the next town several years ago. They have just about everything I ever need. There are a few things they don't have and then I have to go to the hardware store, but that doesn't happen all that often. Check out the receipt below.....

How can you possibly not love a store where you save more than you spend every stinking time you go. This day of shopping was exceptional, I admit, but I always save so much. So yeah, my favorite store is Kohl's. Hands down, the best store around if you are looking for good quality and great savings.

The 30 Day Blog Challenge / Day 2

This is going to be a quick post. I have to get ready for zumba and I have been in my jammie's cleaning house all day. The girls at class would probably like it if I cleaned up a little.

Today's assignment is to take a photo of something you ate today. It is the first day of my new goals for the new year. Healthy eating is one of those goals. I made a pretty awesome dinner. It was kind of like going to Olive Garden and ordering the soup, salad and bread sticks. I made Caesar salad with low calorie dressing, homemade spicy chicken soup and bread sticks. I only ate a half a bread stick, so I call that good.
I know it is only day 2, but I am really liking this challenge. I hope I can keep up with it for the whole month. Thank you ladies for coming up with it.

The 30 Day Blog Challenge

Day 1 of the Challenge ~ Today's assignment is to post a picture of yourself and a description of how your day was.

Well...this is me! My name is Nancy and I am a 57 year old wife, mom and grammy.

Today started at 12:00 a.m. with the New Year and fireworks from my daughter's neighbors. I was watching the grand kids so their mommy and daddy could go out and have some fun. I spent the night at their house. Two out of three kids were up and down all night, so a restful nights sleep was not for me.

I came home a little after 9:00 this morning. I changed my clothes and headed to church and then on to the grocery store. I bought things to make my part of a meal for a good friend and her family. Her dad died on Christmas eve and her brother was leaving to go home this afternoon. Some friends and I made a nice meal for them to share before he had to leave.

After that was taken over, I came home and started on some desperately needed computer time. I am behind in too many things lately. One of my big goals for the new year is to be better organized with my time and my home. I did laundry at the same time. After that, I got on the treadmill for a half hour.

Now it is 5:00 and I am making dinner. I have fish in the oven for fish tacos. One of our family favorites. After dinner is done and cleaned up, it will be time to start taking down the Christmas decorations. I may or may not finish tonight.

So...that is how my day was. Al in all, not a bad day to start 2012. Later tonight, I'll be back to check and see how everyone else's day was.

Just a little side note...I am a contributing writer for the Sisterhood of the Shrinking Jeans. We are a website dedicated to weight loss and fitness. We are starting a new challenge today if anyone is interested in checking us out and joining in.