25 things about me

i just spent at least the last hour filling this out on facebook, so i thought i'd double up and post it here.

1. I usually ignore these kind of chain mail things, but was curious if i could come up with 25 things about myself.  


2. I am a little OCD, and not in a funny way. I actually have to check the stove and doors numerous times before i leave the house, and in the morning before i leave for work, i give each of the cats 3 pieces of food as a treat.  


3. I fall asleep on the couch almost every night.  


4. Right now I am obsessed with the Twilight series. I'm on the second.  


5. When I was little, I wanted to be Annie. I watched it constantly and once broke the glass on our coffee table while dancing to the songs during the fireworks at the end.  


6. The furthest I've ran is 9 miles. I have a love/hate relationship with running.  


7. I talk to both my parents every day.  


8. The first time I kissed a boy I bit his tongue. What was he doing sticking it in my mouth anyway!?  


9. My husband and I met at a Royals game, and neither of us likes watching baseball.  


10. I am afraid of flying.  


11. My best friend has lived 550 miles away for the last 16 years. I still miss having her here.  


12. My favorite toy as a child was my teddy bear, Happy.  


13. I have a tally in my calendar showing how much vacation and personal time i'll have by that date if i don't use any. i update it whenever it changes.  


14. I listen to talk radio 710AM. Dave Ramsey is my favorite.  


15. In high school i wanted to be a geneticist. I ended up as a graphic designer. I think it's better this way. No one's life is hanging in the balance.  


16. I can't stand it when people say "alls" as in "alls you have to do". makes me cringe.  


17. Kitties are my favorite. I have three. Miles, Chloe, and Sophie. I know, they sound like yuppy kids. They are very spoiled.  


18. I have an irrational fear of ostriches. I literally will start crying if i have to watch one move. still pictures i can sort of handle.  


19. I've worn a livestrong bracelet on my right wrist every day for almost 5 years with the exception of two, my best friend's wedding, and my own.  


20. I knew the moment I first saw my husband that I had to know him.  


21. I started a blog, but have only told a few people.  


22. I see the clock at 4:34pm almost every day. That's the time I was born. I also see it at 2:22 alot. That's my grandpa's "number". I like to think he's saying hi.  


23. Sometimes I get restless leg syndrome.  


24. I have to wear reading glasses while i work on the computer.  


25. I didn't realize it would be so hard to come up with 25 things about myself, but i did it, so you guys better do it too!

disney (day 4)-the best day of all!

marathon day started very very early...

that's right jon was up at 2:45 a.m. to get ready and catch the shuttle to the starting line.  he ate some breakfast and tried to wake up...

and put on his shoes with his timing chip and his emergency contact info...

and then his jersey that i painted "5 year ALL SURVIOR" on...

and then he was off into the early morning to take on the race...

i went back to sleep for about an hour and a half, and then wanda arrived to start our day of marathon watching.  we made it to the starting area, but couldn't get a spot to see the runners go by, so we decided to cut our losses and head to the next stop, hopefully beating the rest of the spectators there.  on our way to the monorail, we came across another part of the path.  we weren't sure if it was the blue start or the red (they split the runners for the first 3 miles to aid with congestion) or even which one jon was, but we decided to take our chances and watch for a few minutes, and good thing we did, cause we saw jon before long!  this was at about mile 2...

then we jumped on the train and made it to the 9 mile marker and found a spot to watch.  there were many interesting people running in costume.  my favorite was this gladiator guy...

there were also alot of minnie mouse's.  can't imagine running that far in costume!  we saw jon pass this point too, and he handed off his sunglasses to me for safe keeping.  then we hiked through the polynesian resort to the 12.5 mile marker.  and there he was...

smiling and all!  wanda and i were so proud!

then we grabbed some hawaiian coffee at the hotel, and made our way to the finish line.  the crowd was enormous, but i knew we had some time because i had signed up to get text messages showing jon's progress in the race, so i knew about the time he'd be getting in.  we picked a spot and slowly moved our way up the crowd as people left to go meet their runners that had come by.  just about the time that we got to the front of the pack, here he came!  i could tell that he was in pain, but he looked good and was about to finish his first marathon!  then we walked around to the "family reunion" area to find him.  out he came from the "d" gate (d-as in davis) with his metal, and ice around his poor knees...

i was so proud of my man...

he took a few minutes to stretch, and then we got a nice british man to take a picture of all of us...

then it was back to the resort.  jon showered and then was out on the bed in no time.  he deserved a nice nap!

we both napped for a few hours, and then i insisted that he get up and get moving to help with the soreness.  we took off to the magic kingdom!  it was slow going and jon was so tired, so we grabbed some food and took in just what we absolutely had to see.  we rode the new pirates of the caribbean ride.  johnny depp appears like 4 times, it was wonderful.  of course i made jon put on the jack sparrow hat!  what girl doesn't like a pirate?!

we rode the runaway mine car roller coaster, and the go carts that look like race cars.  i drove, cause jon's legs weren't working so well.  those things are hard to steer!  good thing they're on a track, cause i probably would have run of the road.  okay, not probably, i would have.

we would have ridden space mountain, but it was closed.  so, we got some ice cream on main street usa, and called it a night.  

all in all it was a great trip to the magic kingdom.  i don't think i'll ever be too old to feel the excitement when you walk into that place.  it really is magical.  i just love it, and can't wait to take our kids there someday.

well, that's our disney trip!  it was so wonderful and we are so grateful to all the people who made donations to the leukemia/lymphoma society so that we could meet our goal.  it was the perfect way to celebrate 5 years remission, and to prove that life is sweet on the flip side of cancer.  we are so blessed.  

disney (day 3)

day three consisted of jon playing golf with his step-dad, ray, and me spending the day at the animal kingdom with my mom, step-dad and sisters.  ray picked jon up at the resort and i took the bus to the park to meet the fam.  the first thing we did was get fast pass tickets to ride the big yedi roller coaster.  i couldn't get over the fact that my mom wanted to ride a roller coaster! she has always been a total wuss about rides, and i've never seen her actually want to ride anything but the octopus at world's of fun.  she said she feels like she's getting older, and that she has to start trying new things, because if not she may never be able to.  pretty awesome. i'm so proud of her, and she had so much fun!  

then we went and rode the river raft ride, and i must say, as a child i always wanted to get soaked on rides like this, and i would get off completely dry.  well, i guess i was saving it up for this time, because 10 seconds into the ride we hit a wave, and let's just say that i've had dryer showers before.  i was completely soaked!!  and looking oh-so-fabulous, i might add...
mom and me with our wet curls...madi, lydia, and marc...then we walked through some of the areas to see some animals and caught the bug's life show.  we got to wear these stylish 3-d glasses...

it was a nice day at the animal kingdom, and i think everyone had a good time.  it was nice to spend a day with the family.  the girls are getting so big and turning into teenagers.  it always amazes me how they can be so grown up already!  

the park was alot cooler than i thought it would be.  i was expecting just a zoo, but there was alot to see, and it was of course decorated so fabulously.  why would i expect any less from disney?

after i rode the bus back to the resort, jon's mom and step-dad picked us up and took us to olive garden so jon could carbo-load.  it was a madhouse with all the runners packing in as much pasta as they could stomach, but we found a table in the bar quickly.  over dinner wanda and i discussed our plan of action for sunday.  

then we went back to the room, and jon prepared himself for the race...

he had issues with his knee all through training, so he did some preventative icing.  

that was day 3!  it was a great one.  

disney (day 2)

on day two, friday, we got up and headed to epcot.  first we had to pick up our tickets.  there was one line for will call and one for people taking advantage of the free admission on your birthday.  i was amazed at how many birthdays there were!  people are really diggin' that!  anyway, we waited in line and felt sorry for this leash kid that was in front of us.  he was a smart one though.  he kept twisting so that the leash would get shorter, and harder for his mom to hold on to.  i kept seeing visions of mike myers tied to the jungle gym.  

anyway, we finally got inside...

we rode the mission to mars and i think i'm still dizzy from that.  we rode the test track, which we were looking forward to on recommendation from my dad. sadly, i didn't get any pictures, but it was awesome.  i could see why dad liked it so much and could almost hear him talking about all the car parts while we were waiting in line.  i also saw some similarities in the decor of his garage and the theme of the ride.  (i know this doesn't make much sense, but trust me) jon found his next car....

we rode the log ride and played vikings in norway...

and visited the motherland.  (germany)

next we were rounding the lake, and we both heard a "kerplunk".  i looked at jon and said "what was that!?"  that's right, he totally got crapped on by a seagull!  good thing he was wearing his hat!

by this time it was 2:00 and time for jon's pasta dinner with tnt.  we waited outside these giant wooden doors, and then they opened and it sounded like there were 5,000 adoring fans inside.  jon went in with the other team members, and i was off to china to get some lunch myself.

then i made jon ride the figment ride with me.  he was my favorite as a child.  the ride was not as cool as i remembered, but from the looks of this pic, i was certainly not disappointed...

then we rode the super lame ride in the ball, and they made an awesome video of us...

next we left epcot and headed to disney hollywood studios.  we rode the tower of terror (i almost refused, but there were 5 year olds getting on in front of us, so i figured i'd be okay, but then i kept kicking the poor man next to me the whole time!  i couldn't help it, for some reason, that seems to be my reaction to falling.) and the aerosmith roller coaster and learned more about how we have a bigger personal space than most.  and then, we went to the star wars ride!  jon was so excited to see darth.  (he'll play it cool, but i could see the kid in his eyes & i loved it!)

that pretty much did it for day 2.  it was a good one.

disney (day 1)

well, as much as i'm still trying to get back in the swing of things, i wanted to share my awesome husband's latest accomplishment. a week ago today, jon completed the disney marathon! he never ceases to amaze me. we had a wonderful time enjoying the warm weather and all that disney has to offer. can't wait to go back when we have little ones to enjoy it with! i have many pictures to share, so i'll break them up into a post for each day we were there.

we left freezing kansas city at 6:00 a.m., after in my o.c.d. manner i checked and double checked all the doors and windows making sure everything was secure. (i even took pictures so i could ward off any thoughts that i'd forgotten something.) after a stop in houston, we landed in sunny orlando at 12:20 p.m. and then waited in the mile long line for the shuttle to the resort. seriously, it took forever! 

but finally, we were on the bus...

after settling into our room, we hit the food court because we were both famished from the travel.  $25 dollars later, we were enjoying cheeseburgers and fries outside on the patio.  we met these little guys and shared our fries with them.  i was scared they might peck my eyes out, but they didn't.  one of them reminded me of chloe...i don't know.  

then, it was off to the expo to pick up jon's race packet.  it was packed with vendors trying to sell the runners last minute gear, but being frugal as we are, we got out of there with just the free stuff!

jon signed the "magic of health" board on the way out.  what an awesome way to celebrate!  it's like they had it there just for us!

by this time, we were beat, so we rode back to the resort and confined ourselves to our room for the night.  our room had two full size beds, so we each got our own.  no way we were both sleeping in one of those!  it felt like we were in the 50's, but man did i sleep well!  i was in bed by 7:30 p.m. and didn't get up til 9:00 a.m.  much needed rest.

mahalo

i'm missing hawai'i today.  maybe it's calling my name.  maybe it's in my blood.  maybe it's the assortment of macadamia nut candies that were sent by a sales rep to the office today.  maybe.

last day

here it is.  my last day of break before it's back to work.  i have so enjoyed the last 12 days of freedom from the usual routine, and am going to miss sleeping til 10:00 and living in my sweats. but, i suppose it would get old after a while.  i could totally be okay with it for at least another week though.  

over this break we have enjoyed so much.  christmas was simple and wonderful with each of our families.  we enjoyed brunch with wanda & ray on christmas eve afternoon, and then a beautiful candlelight christmas eve service at our church.  then it was off to the stutsman family gathering at aunt mary ann's.  we finished off the evening celebrating christmas with dad, rachel, brenda & nate at dad's house, and watched george carlin with the family.  (carlin is not necessarily christmasy, but it was a good time nonetheless.)  on christmas day we slept late (i was fighting a cold) and then went to mom's house for lunch and festivities with her, marc, lydia & madi.  we enjoyed a delicious christmas dinner complete with ham, mashed potatoes, corn & (my favorite) broccoli & cheese.  we enjoyed good food & good conversation.  then it was off to the farm for the final stop of the christmas parade.  george & cindy had a delightful spread of fondue and dippings.  we sat around the fire & enjoyed the food & of course, george made me a gimlet.  it was a beautiful evening, and the perfect ending to a wonderful christmas.  

the next week is a blur of relaxation.  we played some games. this one. and this one.  i'll give you one guess who picked which.  

we watched some movies.  the strangers was by far the scariest movie i've seen in quite some time.  scarier than any of the saw movies. terrifying.  we also watched tropic thunder, baby mama, and get smart, and part of mama mia,which my dad gave me for chirstmas.  i hope to catch the rest of it soon.  

new years eve was fun.  for the first time in years we ventured out into the world for a party. we went to our friends chad & abby's for festivities and guessed how many balloons they had rigged into their ceiling to drop at midnight.  however, we pooped out and left before midnight. made it home just in time to see the ball drop on tv.  literally 30 seconds to go as we raced in the door.  

we wrote our goals for 2009, and are feeling blessed and motivated.  the break has been good to me.  i suppose i'm lucky to have a job to go back to.  and lucky to work for a company that allows me this break during the holidays.  

here's to getting back in the swing of things!  

here we go!

we've decided to start a blog.  not sure how it will go, but seems to go well with jen's new year's resolution of taking more pictures and documenting our life together...so here we go!