Wednesday Hodgepodge

I forgot to Hodgepodge last Wednesday! And the host is skipping this week because she has a daughter getting married. So I am going to get last week's answers posted this week and then catch back up next week. And here we go ...

Share a favorite moment from your Christmas holiday celebration.

I think our Christmas Eve celebration was my favorite. Spending time at my parents' with my family was cozy and peaceful and enjoyable. I loved watching my two-year old niece Ashtyn enjoy her time and it was amazing to snuggle with my great niece Ellie. It was just family.

What would you say has been the biggest news event during your life so far?

The obvious answer is 9/11. But more gripping to me was the bombing of the Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City in 1995. New York seemed so far away to me when it happened. But the OKC bombing was the first time in my adult life that something hit so close to home. We were living in Missouri, not Oklahoma at the time, but I was just terrified that a terrorist act had happened in a place so off the radar of what would be a "normal" terrorist attack location. I held my 5 month old baby and just prayed and prayed for those poor people. The images of small dead children being carried out of the daycare that was in the basement was horrifying. The memorial there has chairs for each victim and the children are represented by small chairs. It is moving and so sad and still affects me today. I will forever know where I was and what I was doing when that happened.

The Pantone Color of the Year for 2015 is Marsala. What say you -- like or no like? Would you find this color anywhere in your home or wardrobe? Will you add something in this shade to either?

I love this color! And it's right in my wheelhouse. I love any colors that remind me of fall and this rich wine color certainly does that! I do have this color in my home, as you can see from this picture of my dining room rug.

I have smatterings of it throughout my home. I'm not sure if I have any of this actual color in my wardrobe. But a cable knit infinity scarf would be amazing! Off to Amazon!

This one looks pretty close, huh? It's now in my Cart.

Would you rather meet your ancestors or your great grandchildren? Explain why?

Of course I want to live long enough to meet, hold, and love on my great grandchildren. Grandparents affect their grandchildren so much and want the opportunity to share my stories with my great-grandchildren. But how cool would it be to meet the ancestors your great-grandparents and beyond loved? To know my family heritage up close and personal would be so cool.

Share one life lesson learned in 2014.

I am an introvert. I am not a weird hermit who cannot interact socially, but I am an introvert. I never thought I was one because of my ability to be in a social situation, be funny, talk, etc. What I learned, however, is that I hate doing it. I would much rather be at home with my family or a friend or two. I would much rather go out to dinner with Rick than to meet up with a group of people. It makes me look like a snob. But really I just don't enjoy social settings. It is helping me to understand myself better.

What was your best or favorite purchase made in 2014?

That is an easy one. Definitely the direct vent furnace we purchased for our home. I am currently sitting at the dining room table typing this with the warmth of that furnace blowing on me. It has been an absolute life saver and is keeping this introverted family warm and cozy this winter. Smartest purchase ever.

What is one thing you are looking forward to in the new year?

We have a wedding and a high school graduation coming up. We are planning a trip to Clearwater, Florida, to see Winter and Hope (the dolphins from Dolphin Tale). Those are all very exciting things that are coming up this year. But I am most looking forward to uneventful trips to my parents' house in Florida and weekends reading at their lake house while the kids swim.

Insert your own random thought here.

Kyndal made the very difficult decision to stop working at her hair salon. There is a pot stirrer there, if you know what I mean, who has been making the working environment impossible. She has been doing very well and could have been very successful. But is it worth it to be miserable in your "success"? She and Collin are now weighing the options of what they should do next. There really are not any other opportunities here where we live. Eventually they want to end up in his home town 45 minutes away. Should she go ahead and start her business there? Should she go ahead and get another part-time job there? Does that mean they should sell their house here, even though they love it and it is so super cheap to live here? There are lots of hard decisions coming their way. But God is faithful and has a plan for them and they need to cling to His path for them. It is hard for this mom, though. It's harder to trust God with your childrens' lives than your own. I know they are in Good Hands, but that doesn't keep me from wanting to just solve their problems for them. Plus, it makes me sad to think they may be moving away. Not my will God, but yours be done.