15 Day Challenge: Day 15

I couldn't resist being a day late for the final day of the challenge.  Just seemed fitting considering my pattern throughout the past 15 days :)

[Day 15]: What's the best compliment you've ever received?

The best compliment I have ever received is that I have a great family.  I do have a great family.  And it always makes me happy when other people recognize that fact.  Growing up, I thought every family was like mine.  Every family had all the fun we had and enjoyed being with one another as much as we do.  As I got older, I quickly realized that some people don't have the same family structure or environment that we do.  Now that I live so far away from them, I realize how great they are even more.  Luckily, I get to spend the next couple of days with all of them.  SUPER excited about that.

Family group shot from Memorial Day Weekend 2012

I really enjoyed being able to participate in this challenge.  Look forward to keeping up with a lot of new blogs as a result.  Hope you all have a great week!!


Andrea :)

15 Day Challenge: Day 14

[Day 14]: If you were only allowed to watch one movie for the rest of your life, what movie would it be and why?

Hands down, no doubt in my mind, it would be Remember the Titans.  When I first moved to New York, I had a suitcase and duffle bag.  The first things I asked to be shipped to me from home were a couple of penguin items and my Remember the Titans DVD.   I have already addressed my passion for all things Denzel so that explains part of the reason this would be my pick.  However, the main reason is the content of the movie.  I love football, but this is more than that. This is an incredible story about a team coming together in the midst of both scary and dangerous times of racial integration in the early 70's.  BUT overcoming the odds, they eventually integrated personally, and were successful on the field because of it.  That is a lesson that is invaluable.  My favorite line in the movie is when the Julius and Gerry are having words regarding the dynamics of the team and Julius says, "Attitude reflect leadership, Captain." and walks away.  There are SO many other good lessons and lines in this classic.  I could watch it every day and be enthralled in the story every time.  If you haven't seen it, I highly recommend it, but hopefully it is a favorite of yours as well.

There's only one more day of the challenge left.  I'm kind of sad about that.  Hope you all have a fantastic day!!

Andrea :)

15 Day Challenge: Day 13

[Day 13]: What are your favorites?

Let the favorite fun begin :)  I loved this one....

Favorite Prayer:

God, grant me the serenity

to accept the things I cannot change;

courage to change the things I can;

and wisdom to know the difference.

Favorite Season/Month:

Summer/July...and if you've been keeping up with my posts for this challenge, you should have guessed this easily :)

Favorite Bible Verse:

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." - Jeremiah 29:11

Favorite Band:

Rascal Flatts....love them!!  I can't pick just one song as a favorite though.  There are FAR too many!

Favorite Restaurant:  

Chick-fil-A...without a single doubt! 

Favorite Quote:

I have come to realize that LIFE is about taking CHANCES...sometimes you WIN and sometimes you LOSE...but in the end I've learned that absolutely EVERYTHING happens for a reason.

It's true!  I think this one is a combination of various quotes, but I love it!

Favorite Vacation Spot:

This one is tough.  My favorite vacation with my family was to Hawaii, particularly the luau.  My favorite vacation with just mom and dad was our couple of days in Rome.  My favorite "vacation" with my brothers was Super Bowl XLIV.  My favorite "vacation" with Chris is when we go to Vermont (well at least so far).

Favorite photo of me and Christopher:



From our first trip to Vermont :)

Andrea :)

15 Day Challenge: Day 12

[Day 12]: What are you most looking forward to in the next six months?

This one is pretty easy for me.  I am MOST looking forward to Christopher moving to NYC so we can finally be in the same city after roughly 2 and a half years of living in different places.  Nothing is completely certain yet, but I am positive that the move will happen within the next six months!  There are some opportunities on the horizon and the timing and situation just seems right this time.  We are both hoping and praying this all becomes a reality by the end of the summer.  I can't wait!  I know there will be some adjustments and our relationship will change as a result, but I know these will all be for the better and I am very exciting about all of the possibilites they will bring.

I'm also looking forward to:

- celebrating my birthday later this month...over the course of several different days and several different places...yes, I am one of THOSE people :)
- our August vacation
- running my last NYRR qualifying race in September
- going to Pitt in October for Chris' godson's baptism
- seeing my family at some point in the fall (and hoping my niece isn't too grown by then...she's getting so big, so fast...and I'm not sure when I'll be seeing her again after these next few days...makes me SO sad)
- relaxing after our busiest season at work ends in about a month

What are you looking most forward to in the next few months??

Andrea :)

15 Day Challenge: Day 10 and 11

So....sadly, I have fallen behind again.  Might have something to do with this 32-team National Tournament I am running this week/weekend.  But more on that after the 15 day challenge ends.  I am determined to keep up even if I have to do it two days at a time....

[Day 10]: What is your most embarrassing moment?

Fortunately, I am not too easily or often embarrassed.  I have a great ability to laugh it off and just keep going.  However, in recent years it seems I have a terrible time with falling down.  I slipped on ice in the middle of 5th Avenue, I slid halfway across Times Square with my laundry bag in the middle of a terrible rain storm, and I have even fallen up stairs, but none of these compare to one ill fated fall way back in my early high school days.  My family and I had gone to Cracker Barrel for lunch one perfectly fabulous day.  I could NOT have been happier because that is one of my favorites southern chains.  (PS - Do you know they have one of these in the Albany, NY area?  JACKPOT!!)  Anyway, after finishing the yummy meal and looking around in the store for a bit we began to head to the car.  If I remember correctly, and I'm not sure I'd be able to live it down even if I forgot, I was happily skipping/walking out to the car when I tripped and fell.  Not only did I fall, but in the process I managed to make a huge tear in my overalls (yes, I was wearing overalls and yes, they quite possibly might have been my favorite outfit at the time).  Now if I had just got up and moved on my with ripped overall life, everything would have quickly been forgotten by my family.  Instead, I broke down crying over my ripped overalls. Crying like it was my last day on Earth.  Crying in a way that was totally uncalled for considering the circumstances.  Crying...buckets of tears. You can imagine how this would lead to my very fun loving family having a hay day at my expense....of course, only after they'd asked if I was ok.  If only I had known that would be the style just a few years down the line.

[Day 11]: What's one thing that you would never change about yourself?

I have a few things.  Sorry, I couldn't just narrow it down to one thing.  And I'm considering that a good thing :)

I would never change the fact that I am "nice".  Whatever that exactly means.  I have always been the "nice" girl.  When I was younger, it didn't seem very fun or exciting, but I have a better understanding of it now.  I like being nice.  Besides people always remember how you made them feel, right?   

On a slightly less intense note, I have never put any dyes or color on my hair.  And the color is PERFECT...if I must say so myself :)  I like to say I am a red head, but I'm not your typical red head.  I just have hints of red that are especially visible during the summer months.  In the winter, the color gets a little darker, but still has those natural highlights that I love. While I haven't always loved the texture or style of cut, the color is something that I never wanted to change.  Same goes for my eyes.  They change tint with what I am wearing, but I have always been happy they are mine when I look in the mirror.

Lastly, I would not change my accent.  Moving from Kentucky to New York (and spending a bit of time in London along the way), I have recieved many a comment (notice I didn't say compliment...although those are fairly common, too) on my "southern" accent.  To me, I don't sound THAT southern, but I know I do have an accent.  To New Yorkers, I must sound like I came straight off the farm.  Regardless of the positive and negative comments, my accent is something I am glad to be able to carry around with me.  And I must admit, it helps me out more often than not in the big city :)

Hoping I can get back on track for these last few days!!

Andrea :)

15 Day Challenge: Day 9

[Day 9]: Tell us the best day of your life to date.

To be honest, I don't have a lot of too horribly terrible days.  Most of my days rank about the same - average, but good.  Nothing out of the ordinary special, but nothing rock my world horrible either.  I am kind of ok with that though.  I prefer predictable and routine most of the time.  And fortunately, that is how most of my days seem to play out.  Now, I must admit, when I think of best day of my life stories, I think of the day I got engaged, the day I got married, the day I found out I was pregnant, the day I gave birth to my child, the day I became a grandparent, etc.  While I do believe that in due time all of those days will come and all of them will seem like the best day of my life, none of them have come for me yet so I had to think again.  Perhaps outside the box.  So, for the best day of my life, I would have to go with the day I accepted Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior.  This was many, many, many days ago....back when I was in high school.  You see, I had made a decision when I was probably a bit too young to really comprehend the real meaning of it.  I just went along with the rest of the crew at a VBS one summer.  When I was younger I never knew the difference, but as I got older I knew there was something missing.  I began to feel those tugs at my heart week after week at church, when we had youth group events, when we went away to camps, etc., but I didn't really know what to do until one fateful night at a service in our fellowship hall (we were in the process of building a new sanctuary).  Our pastor, Bro. Jeff, had recently broken his legs in a car accident and was just getting to the point in his recovery where he could stand and preach again.  It was late summer just as school was beginning for the year.  Bro. Jeff essentially told us how he had come to accept Christ as his Savior and he admitted to us that he made a true decision to become a Christian (for what might have seemed like a second time) beyond his childhood years.  This was my window of opportunity.  No one could question me if they were willing to accept what he was telling us that night.  That is when I made the decision to be real about my Christianity and to accept that Jesus Christ had come while I was still an unworthy sinner and died on the cross to pay the price for me.  His grace would be sufficient for me FOREVER now.  So, while "best" days will come and go over the course of my lifetime, I can say with absolute certainty that this was the best decision that I ever made no matter what good or bad days may come my way.

Andrea :)

15 Day Challenge: Weekend Wrap-up Edition...Day 6, 7, 8

I have been busy hanging out with Christopher this weekend so I am a bit behind on the 15 Day Challenge.  Forgive me for playing catch up, but I was very happy to be able to spend the extra time with him.  Here's the weekend wrap-up....

[Day 6]: What's something you've always wanted to do but haven't? Why not?

I have a whole list of things I want to do, but haven't listed here.  I have marked some of them as done (yay!!), but still have several to go.  Most of them involve travel or attending events.  I tend to do most things that interest me, but there are some items I would really like to cross off sooner than later.  Another thing I thought would be fun to do that isn't on my bucket list is ride a hot air balloon.  My brother and sister-in-law did that in Australia about a year ago and it sounded like a lot of fun.  Check out the bucket list to see some more things that I would like to do, but haven't been able to make the time to do yet.

[Day 7]: Recommend a book for us to read. Why is it important/special to you?

I used to read SOOOO much more than I do now, but I would like to get back in the habit of reading for pleasure on a regular basis so I am very interested to hear your suggestions.  One of the books that I read recently that really stuck with me was The Help by Kathryn Stockett.  I absolutely loved the way it was written in sections through different character's point of view.  The story was also very intriguing and moving.  The movie (which I saw after reading the book) stuck very close to the book, but I still recommend the book.  Even though it wasn't based on a true story, it was based on some very sad, but true historical facts about southern life in the 1960s.  I have always been interested in both history and psychology...this book has lots of both.  If there is anyone that hasn't already read it, I highly recommend it.

[Day 8]: Describe the good, the bad, and the ugly about yourself.

The Good

- I have a great sense of humor and love to laugh.  Love it!

- I am loyal. Particularly, I will defend my family, Christopher, and my truest, bluest friends (there are only a handful of these in my life) to the death. TO. THE. DEATH.  Just try me.

- I have a wide range of interests from sports to theater, country life to city living, cupcake connoisseur to running races.  About the only thing I don't find interesting on some level is fashion.

The Bad

- I have a horrible sense of time and direction.  I always find myself running late (which I hate) and getting lost (which I think I hate more).

- I often put too much trust in people that always let me down or use me.  Time after time after time.  I have gotten better with this one over time, but I still seem to attract people that like to take advantage.  Let's just say I don't have as many serial offenders anymore.  That's progress.

- When I feel hurt/get upset/am disrespected, I tend to hold it in and let it build up.  I am working to rectify this as I know it is not a positive thing for me.

The Ugly

- I don't do confrontation well. I get defensive or dismissive.  I just don't handle it well.

- Once I lose trust and respect in a person, it is gone.  There aren't any second chances.  It takes a lot to get me to that point, but once I'm there...I don't come back for more.

- Lie to me or yell at me and I am through.  These are my two deal breakers in life.  The truth will set you free and is always best.  I simply do not respond to yelling.  Even when I played sports and even when my parents (on a very, very rare occasion) did it.  I prefer to be spoken to in a normal tone regarding whatever has made someone angry, upset, etc.

Hoping to keep up with the day-by-day posts for the rest of this challenge.  I have enjoyed the prompts and reading what everyone else linking up had to say.  Hope you had a wonderful weekend!

Andrea :)