Random Dozen

It's time for another random dozen questions. Below are my answers. Feel free to put some answers of your own in the comments. To read more answers, click on the button.

1. What was the last song you listened to?

Actually I don't know the name of it. It was something about wanting to know what love is. It was on a commercial for the new Alvin and the Chipmunks movie that's coming out. The three chipmunks had just encountered girls, and there was a lot of dreamy-eyed staring going on. And since this is a dozen questions, I'm going to refrain from getting into the whole love-is-not-the-squiggly-feeling-you-get-the-first-time-you-see-someone thing. I'll save that for my kids.

2. Have you ever had “buyer’s remorse” over anything?

Once or twice I've bought something that was a little small, thinking it would be an incentive for me to lose weight. That was really stupid and a total waste of money. By the time I got down to that size, the outfit would be out of style anyway.

3. What is something in your life that you are thankful for now that you didn’t think you would be at the time of the event? (Something that seemed ill-timed, inconvenient or hurtful which turned out to be a good thing)

Believe it or not, I'm thankful for our dog. (At least most of the time.) Our household is so full and so busy, I didn't think we needed another pet, but Sonny is absolutely adorable. He plays hide-n-seek with the boys and he actually grins when he's enjoying himself.

4. Do you watch the Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade every year? If so, do you have a favorite float or balloon?

We used to watch it every year when I was growing up. It was as much a part of Thanksgiving morning as football was for Thanksgiving afternoon. I've kind of grown out of it though. I love all the traditional stuff, but I hate the commercialization it's turned into. I want to watch a parade, not a few floats in between each of the new tween or country acts that show up to perform. And please don't get me started on the commentators. They may be absolutely brilliant actors, news anchors, etc., but the illusion they try to give that we're all sitting and watching this together makes me glad these people aren't visiting at our house for Thanksgiving.

5. Share a quote, scripture, poem or lyric which has been an inspiration to you lately.

"Life is hard and then you die, so eat your breakfast." I guess I can't really say that inspired me lately since I'm the one that said it. It came out of my mouth in response to one of my kids whining about something. They've threatened to put this saying on my tombstone.

6. This is meant to be a fun question, and this is a G-rated blog, but please share a “guilty pleasure,” something that you enjoy that’s probably not the most edifying, time-worthy or healthy thing you could be indulging in. Did I mention--G rating?

This is a difficult question. See, I don't like guilt. And if something makes me feel guilty, it sucks all the joy out of the "pleasure" part of it. Plus, I'm not sure I know you well enough to share what I would enjoy that would make me feel guilty.

7. What Thanksgiving food are you looking forward to?

Obviously there's the turkey. And the homemade stuffing. Mashed potatoes. Gotta have the green bean casserole. My boys look forward to the orange salad. My husband likes the stuffed mushrooms. Everyone likes the cinnamon rolls for breakfast. Ham rolls are an absolute must. And we've gotta have a relish tray of olives and pickles. My husband likes both the pumpkin and pecan pies. The kids like the chocolate pie and apple pie. Obviously it's hard to choose. This year I'm mostly looking forward to not cooking since we're going to someone else's house for dinner!

8. What is your favorite book to read to children, or what was your favorite childhood book?

My favorite childhood books were the Nancy Drew series. Could not get enough of them. If I'm reading to my kids, I love reading from the Bloodhound series by Bill Myers. They're so funny, and they also teach some good Biblical truths to kids.

9. Do you collect anything? (Feel free to post a photo.)

Years ago I used to collect music boxes. Most of them were destroyed by one too many games of football or wrestling in the living room. Now I collect some Boyd's Bear stuff. I also collect shoes. My goal is to have a pair in every color known to man.

10. Gift bags or wrapping paper?

When we went to Uganda, I took gift bags with us because I couldn't get wrapping paper over there, and gift bags are reusable. Now that we're back here, I'll use a gift bag if I'm giving to someone outside the family. For family, especially at Christmas, it's wrapping paper, baby! With all the ribbons and bows and trimmings. It's an enormous job, and you can tell when we're getting towards the end because the "extras" tend to get a little sparse.

11. Share an after-school memory from when you were younger. What was your routine like on an average day?

After changing my clothes and doing whatever chores I had to do, I would watch an episode of Batman. Yeah, the one with Adam West. Then I would go outside and ride my bike or play football with the boys next door. That was all before I was twelve. I held a part time job after school from the time I was twelve until I wasn't in school anymore.

12. True story: Once, in a job interview, I was asked this question and told there would be no clarifying; I simply had to answer the question: “When you’re fishing, do you feel for the fish?” So what about you? When you're fishing, do you feel for the fish??

In the first place, I don't like fishing. In the second place, no! Do you feel for the chicken when you buy eggs? Do you feel for the cow when you buy milk? Better yet, do you feel for the cow when you buy ground beef? Why on earth would you be fishing at all if you have any sympathy for the fish? (My husband shot Bambi's mother, and I'm proud of him!)