Why I Love...

...the sauna.

For Krista.

When I was growing up I hated the sauna with a passion rivaling my hate for liver. No, I've never tried liver, but the analogy seemed fitting. It was hot and sweaty and it hurt to breathe. To say the least, I found it unpleasant.

A couple weeks ago my friend Krista and I started going to the gym together. We started taking some weightlifting class and branched out to the ellipticals. I love ellipticals, as you know. One day after a sweaty workout on the elliptical Krista asked if I wanted to go in the sauna. I could tell she wanted to so I went along with it. My life will never be the same.

The sauna was nothing like I remembered. Well, it was actually everything I remembered: hot, sweaty, and difficult to breathe. But somehow it was--dare I say it?--fun. I was just sweating up a storm and it didn't bother me. (I hate to sweat. I used to sweat all the time when I was way overweight. Now I'm always cold. Go figure.) There's something about sauna sweat that's different from other sweat. Kind of like exercise sweat. I don't mind sauna sweat or exercise sweat like I do it's-such-a-hot-day-sweat. Can I say sweat any more times? Sweat.

While we were in the sauna that first day Krista was telling me about how good it was for us. I did some internet research and found out the sauna is really good for you. I felt great for the rest of that day, and now I always look forward to sauna time.

So, Krista, thank you.

Top Ten Greatest Inventions Ever

1. Google. Read about why I love it here.

2. Microwave popcorn. Sadly my microwave burns popcorn. Always. I'm not sure why, but the popcorn will still be popping away and there will be a giant burnt ball right in the middle of the bag. Major bummer.

3. Adding machines, sometimes called a Ten-Key, a term which I find hilarious. Man, do I love those beasts. They're an accountants best friend.

4. Pam. It's butter in a can. Simple as that.

5. Smucker's Magic Shell. See what I wrote yesterday.

6. Knife blocks. A place to put your sharp objects.

7. Excel and Access. You can do anything in Excel, and I actually used Access (it's a database program, if you've never heard of it) to do my wedding guest list. Those people at Microsoft are brilliant.

8. Elliptical machines. Do not even get me started because I won't stop. Someday, someday, I will own one.

9. Ebay and Craig's list. It's like a garage sale, only all the time. With everything you could ever want.

10. Facebook. It makes stalking people so much easier than it used to be.

Why I Love...

...Smucker's Magic Shell.

It's delicious and nutritious!

Okay, scratch that last part. But it is delicious.

I makes my ice cream so nummy (yes I meant to type 'nummy'), just like the DQ dipped cones. There is nothing better than a solid chocolate shell on my ice cream, except for Girl Scout Cookie Blizzards. But not the tagalong kind, only the thin mint ones.

Magic Shell is the fifth best invention ever, behind Google, microwave popcorn, adding machines, and Pam. Maybe someday I will make a list of the top ten best inventions ever. Maybe tomorrow.

Yes, tomorrow. I know you're really looking forward to it, but try to remember what this post is all about: Magic Shell. It's deliciousness in a bottle. And, in case you thought it couldn't get any better, get this: it comes in different flavors.

I know you almost fell off your chair in amazement.

It comes in six different flavors: caramel, chocolate, chocolate fudge, s'more, cherry, and cupcake. My favorite flavor is chocolate fudge, because why not?

Now, Hershey also makes a chocolate shell called, creatively enough, Hershey's Shell. I prefer Smucker's, and I don't know why. I'm surprised I do, but there you have it. Although Hershey has more interesting flavors, including Reese's and Heath. So I guess if you want to go that route, I won't try and stop you.

I won't tell you what's in the Magic Shell because it will probably disturb you. Plus, I don't know. But I do know it's delicious, whatever it is. Kind of like hot dogs.

So go buy some Magic Shell and give 'er a whirl. Enjoy!

Strange

At the gym I go to there are handicapped parking places right by the door. This is normal.

What isn't normal is that people actually park in them. I mean, it's the gym.

Now I do not mean to imply that handicapped people cannot or should not use the gym, nor do I mean any offense towards the handicapped, but this is strange. Let me tell you what I saw.

The other day after I put in a solid sweat-fest on the elliptical I saw a woman walking to her minivan, which was parked in a handicapped spot. She did not have a wheelchair; she did not have a cane. She walked herself down the sidewalk and to the driver's side of her van.

I had seen this woman on the treadmill ealier. Contradiction? I think so.

I had a confusing moment where I kind of stopped and stared at her. I hope she didn't notice.

If you know a way to acquire handicapped parking stickers without being handicapped, would you let me know?

Much appreciated.

a combination of two very excellent things

If you've read my blog for any length of time you've heard me talk about The Pioneer Woman.

She's my hero. Check out her blog here. She'll be your hero too.

And here's the great news: The Pioneer Woman made a cookbook.

I'll wait while you stop jumping up and down from excitement. Believe me, if I wouldn't have been in class the first time I found out, I would have been jumping up and down with you.

The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Recipes From An Accidental Country Girl by Ree Drummond will be released on October 27. You can pre-order it online--Amazon is the cheapest. You can bet I'll be pre-ordering that bad boy. The one thing I love about Ree's cooking section on her blog is that everything is so simple. She gives step-by-step instructions with pictures the whole way. It makes cooking a snap.

Also, if you're a real die-hard, Ree will be at the Mall of America on Saturday, November 21, 2009 to sign copies of her cookbooks. I'm seriously considering going. I love this woman.

Did I ever tell you about the time I had a dream about her? That was maybe a little too strange...

As a side note: The Pioneer Woman is in People magazine's November 2009 Country Special Issue. And she's been on CNN. She's like, famous.

Check out her website. Believe me, you'll be addicted.

October 23

Today is the six-year anniversary of my father's death.

Sometimes it feels like ages ago, but I remember it like it was yesterday.


I just spent five minutes staring at those two sentences, trying to think of something profound to say. I'm not in a profound state of mind, I guess, so I'll just be my normal self.

Today means so many things to me. It's a day to remember my dad. It's a day to miss him. But it's not a day to get bogged down in sadness and what-could-have-beens. Life is for living. If there was only one thing that this day has taught me, it is to never ever take life for granted.

I don't remember a lot about the year after my dad died. I'm not sure what I did for that first week. I do remember we got a lot of plants at the funeral. My mom never had plants before that, so it was strange. They're all gone now; our cats destroyed them. I remember a woman from church baked a loaf of chocolate-chocolate chip zucchini bread, a recipe I loved so much I later asked her for it. I still make it to this day. I remember students at the school making my brother, sister, and I a huge banner, telling us they were thinking about us. It hung on the wall in our basement for months before I finally took it down. I still have it. I pull it out every once in a while.

At the time I wondered how I would survive. But now, in hindsight, I can see it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. Don't misunderstand; logically I know it was the hardest thing I've ever done in my life. But I know I can do it again. And in all likelihood, I will.

Now is the perfect time for a good quote on character building. Too bad I don't know one. But it's true. I don't like to get into discussion about evil and pain in the world and why God allows it. (I get enough of that from my Christian Thought class.) I don't know that God was using my dad's death to build my character, but that's the effect that it had. I had a choice to blame God for what had happened or to trust Him. And I am a much stronger person today for the choice I made six years ago.

I heard this song on the radio this week. It's a song I've heard many times before, but hearing it this week, with my dad's death so fresh in my mind, made me consider it in a new light.



I Still Believe: Jeremy Camp


Scattered words and empty thoughts
Seem to pour from my heart
I've never felt so torn before
Seems I don't know where to start
But its now that I feel your grace fall like rain
From every fingertip washing away my pain

I still believe in your faithfulness
I still believe in your truth
I still believe in your holy word
Even when I don't see, I still believe

Though the questions still fog up my mind
With promises I still seem to bear
Even when answers slowly unwind
It's my heart I see you prepare
But its now, that I feel, your grace fall like rain
From every fingertip washing away my pain

I still believe in your faithfulness
I still believe in your truth
I still believe in your holy word
Even when I don't see, I still believe

Well the only place I can go is into your arms
Where I throw to you my feeble prayers well in brokenness
I can see that this was your will for me
Help me to know that you are near

I still believe in your faithfulness
I still believe in your truth
I still believe in your holy word
Even when I don't see, I still believe

we love movies

Darren and I see a lot of movies. We both love the theater experience. Popcorn, yum. Raisinetts, yummier. Popcorn with Raisinetts in it? The best.

How quickly I am distracted by food. Moving on...


I have saved every movie stub from every movie Darren and I have ever seen together.

The first movie we ever saw was Live Free or Die Hard while Darren was home on pass in June 2007. The second movie we ever saw was Live Free or Die Hard while Darren was home on pass in June 2007.

Yes, I typed that correctly. Yes, we saw the same movie two nights in a row. I slept through it the second time. Literally stretched out on a couple seats and slept.

Our third movie we saw the day Darren came home from Iraq. His parents and sister were in the cities and we saw The Kingdom with them at the AMC Theater in Roseville.

Don't worry, I'm not going to tell you all of them; only the highlights. There was I Am Legend, which scared the living daylights out of me, on December 16, 2007. I was home on Christmas break. We saw PS I Love You on New Year's Eve 2007.

We saw Fool's Gold twice. It was still funny the second time. Nothing better than Matthew McConaughey and Kate Hudson.

Definitely Maybe was out Valentine's Day date movie...until we ran into my sister and friend at the movie theater. So we saw it with them instead.

We watched Marley and Me on Christmas Day with his family. They have a tradition of going to see a movie that day. Marley and Me was okay...if you wanted to cry on Christmas Day.

Australia was less than a hit. The only thing I remember from that movie is the phrase "I will sing you to me." It's somewhat of a joke now.

We saw Defiance in Duluth two days after our wedding, while we were on our honeymoon. Talk about a long and depressing movie.

The last movie we saw was Surrogates last Friday. I don't recommend it.

All in all, we've seen 51 movies over the past two years. That's about a movie every other week. Like I said, we love movies.