Juliet

My cat had kittens. This is not startling news if you don't know Juliet. She's a 10- or 11-year-old cat who's definitely got a few kinks in her mental workspace. I'm pretty sure she's retarded, actually, and I'm just stating that as a fact. SHe rolls off tables when she's happy. Not very bright. ALso, she has mutant kittens. It's just weird, and often gross. They're often bald, too big/small, and dead or dying. She had a cute orange one that lived for 3 weeks- then died suddenly. This one looks exactly like her, down to the orange spot on it's ear, and it's a girl (named Helen of Troy for now, possibly Macbeth later) so I'm thinking if it lives Juliet will finally die....

Worth A While

I’m not beautiful
I’m not a genius
I’m not interesting
Or worth much time
I’m not perfect
I’m not witty
I’m not even optimistic
Or worth much effort
I can’t say how much I love you
I can only hold your hand tightly
I’m not mesmerizing
Or energetic
But in his eyes I become
What I always longed to be
He thinks I’m a gorgeous, smart, feisty woman
He tells me I’m flawless, funny, and bright
He squeezes my hand right back
Bring me up out of my every funk
He says I’m dazzling and wild
As if his time and effort are never
Wasted on me
And if they are, he says
It’s time well wasted

Slowdancin In A Burnin Room

There once was a boy who,
No matter where he went,
Destroyed everything he touched
He met a girl who had pretended
That she was ‘good’ for so long
She no longer knew where the façade ended
And she began
There once was a boy
Who was never happy for very long
He met a girl who could only dream of normality
He saw the girl for what she was
She knew him better than he knew himself
And neither were satisfied with what they saw
Too many roadblocks on the way to recovery
Too many false alarms pulled
There once was a boy incapable of real love
He met a girl that wanted only that
There once was a boy
Who fell for a girl
Who couldn’t fix him
Because she was broken

This ring is from Lord of the Rings, one of my all-time favorite movies. I've been drooling over this for like, 3 years now I think? Yeah...I'm weird. I should just buy it, but I was sorta saving it for a special occasion, like an engagement or something? Who knows when THAT'LL happen, though! I'm saving up for it now :)

She's Already Gone

I miss the strong side
The side that saw black and white
The part of me that dreamed of things that could never be
There’s a danger in dreaming of a future that could exist
For if it fades away, so will I
I’m placing trust in a man
Who has no idea who I was and still am sometimes
I’m the one who hates to talk
But wishes someone could hear her
The girl who spends forever on her makeup
Then avoid eye contact when you give compliments
I’m the girl who draws you close
Then habitually pushes you away
The girl who used to cry every single night
Living with flashes of nightmares
Tormented by demons she didn’t know how to fight
I’m the girl who hid from everyone
Losing herself along the way
I’m the girl who had no reason to go on
Until he came along
I was so far gone before he saved me
And I’m wondering if you ever really come back from that
So much damage was already done

Willow Tree

My crazy cat, Juliet

Amy's weird white mama cat

Mom burnt some grass & it looked cool

Mountain air

Daisy attacking me!

This is what she does every day

Knocked me over

Calming down

Hyper!

Meet Daisy

Jade modeling for me

So cute

Our First Date

Well he surprised me that's for sure! Mikey told me on Sunday that he had to take his truck up to Iowa City and drop it off 'for his dad' and then Monday night- our date night- he said he couldn't pick me up til 6:30 because he had to 'do some stuff for his Pap (Grandpa)'. And like the trusting girlfriend I am, I didn't get suspicious or ask questions. I just shrugged it off and went on like business as usual! On Monday I got ready to go at 6:30 and he texted and told me he was here so I went and beat him to the door, walked out onto the porch...and saw a huge white limo sitting in our muddy graveled driveway. I felt my face freeze up and all the words that usually flood my brain evaporate. I ran through dozens of reactions in my brain before I meekly entered the limo and sat on the leather seats, sort of laughing. I had been a little irked that he hadn't made any plans for this, our 6-month anniversary and first 'official' (since he asked my dad about it) date. But I wasn't gonna mope about that, I just made sure we would go eat someplace good and then either shop or hit a movie afterwards. Good enough for me! Apparently guys surprise you only when you stop caring. No one's EVER done anything like that for me before, so I was kind of on cloud nine. I gave him his Ipod on the way up, not feeling ridiculous about spending so much any more! Once we got to the restaurant- Outback steakhouse, yum- there were these Amish girls sitting on a bench ooh-ing and ahh-ing over the limo. That cracked us up! The food was great, I got ribs and he got steak and we shared. Then we went shopping and he insisted on buying me something so I found some AWEsome purple pants, which were buy 1 get 1 free so I got pink ones too! We ended up at Barnes and Noble's, where I could probably LIVE if allowed. He went down and pulled the truck around while I found 2 books I wanted to read so I bought them. He was mad that I didn't wait and let him buy them, because I wasn't supposed to spend my money, which I said was sexist and he had bought me enough, anyways. He drove me home and I said see ya Wednesday, to which he replied "Dang it!" Apparently he's not sick of me after all these long months :)

Bunnies playing soccer

All the 'greats'

Seth didn't seem to think their baskets were even...

Beth thought this was pretty funny- Andrew got

as many eggs as the big kids!

Jill helped Thursday a little

It was such a nice day! Just a lil windy

The kick was good

Conference on dangers of the outdoors

Playing with his toys

An egg's terrifying perspective

So many eggs, so little places to hide

The many faces of Thursday

The 'housing development' tree

Kids pouring out to hunt for eggs

We put out Easter eggs at Grandma Faber's! Just a preview for now, I'll post more pics asap!

Up Above It All

Patience is a virtue long underrated
Possessed by few humans
The ability to wait for the inevitable
Is an abnormality known by little
It feels like firecrackers in your feet
Urging you to run until you can go no further
It feels like waves stuck in your stomach
Longing to break across a distant shore
Silence is golden, a whisper is silver
Thoughts retained are worth the effort
The ability to think twice before voicing your opinions
Is a superior tool to swords and arrows
It feels like a sea after the storm
The rain that makes the earth smell so clean and sweet
And I long for patience as I crave silence
A day of not speaking would be paradise
Being able to wait for him is getting easier as time moves
Much as it always has- relatively
And in my silence
I see the future
And I’m not scared anymore

STOP

Everyone’s pulling me in so many directions
Into the past
Where everything went wrong
And I was constantly waiting for the next disaster
Into the future
Where everything looks right
And I have to last long enough to see if it is
I’ve never wanted someone so badly
The way I NEED him astounds me
The ways he’s perfect for me too numerous
He’s what’s saving me
But there are those little moments
When I’m tired of being torn in two or three
Too many men fighting for my ownership
And I’d like to be cut out of the equation
But I want them all in my life
I wish they could forget the past
As easily as I do now
Living life on my own
In a place where no one knows me
No one to pull me this way and that
Getting away from them all
Never seemed quite so appealing

So here's the bridesmaid dress I'm gonna be wearing next May, God willing...my best friend Trista is finally getting hitched to her guy, Randy. I went down there last summer and met him for the first time. He's pretty cool, we got along good, and he's taking good care of her, so I had no complaints. Trista and I grew up neighbors, friends, and basically sisters! She's my closest childhood friend, I love her to death, and I'm SO honored to be part of her special day. I'm gonna cry, I just know it...

Our presents to each other

What he got me....


and what I got him :)

Our six-month anniversary is this Monday- time really flies when you're having a blast and falling in love! We went to Walmart the other night and he got me ALL this chocolate. That's why I REALLY love him, ha! I was putting it in my closet and hanging up shirt he's gotten me (picked out by his sister, but he does have good fashion taste) and noticing all the necklaces and candies and ticket stubs he's purchased...and I thought, I'm just gonna buy him an Ipod, since he wants one and I'M the one putting music on it for him anyways. He'd already picked it out but wouldn't buy it, so I got it the other night and it's ready to go Monday night! He asked my dad if he could take me to Iowa City for our 'first official date' which is funny since it'll be our 6-month mark of dating. But whatever! We're probably the weirdest couple ever, so this fits us. I just hope he accepts the present graciously.

His Flag- Finland

Mine- China!

As we painted flags on the addition floor the other night, Mikey asked me why stars have five points anyways. An hour later, I think I answered his question. I have a lot of my father in me. First, I told him everything I knew about stars, and some of what I know about our galaxy. He was great, always asking new questions once I answered his first one. I gave hima ll the answers I could, then pulled out my dusty astronomy magazines and a huge space book Dad got me last year. Astronomy is one hobby I adore and am constantly learning more about. I love using my telescope but need to find out more about it! Mikey was amazed by all the information pouring out of me. That's the greatest part of our relationship, though- learning each other's obsessions and growing to love them! For all he knows about guitars and chords, I know about nebulas and galaxies. He never changes who I am, only pulls out the pieces of me that I've forgotten to share with him.