Melody Farms my very first friend

     Ice cream and dairy products?  Nope, an actual person.  One of my very first friends that I can remember.  Her name is Melody.  I just wanted to write this down somewhere so that I have it to remind me of how goofy I was as a kid.
    *Let me preface this by giving you some background on myself. I was in foster care. I had been placed in about half a dozen homes by this point. My normally gregarious personality was replaced by an insecure and meek kid who could barely eek out a hello to the teacher. I knew no one and was in a completely different socioeconomic area with a completely different demographic*   I remember it pretty well.  I had just started a new school. I came into the school year about a month or two after school had already started.  Yeah, nothing like being the new kid after school has already been in session a while.  I was walking home from school by myself.  I was kind of a daydreamer and was in my own little world when I noticed a girl a little older than me kind of walking quickly behind me.  I got nervous and panicked, so I walked faster.  She walked faster behind me.  I got a little more nervous and started walking like the mom walkers at the mall.  I looked out of the corner of my eye.  Oh no, she walked at full brisk pace.  I started jogging.  She started jogging. I kept thinking, "What is up with this person!"(I was only six at this point, yes six, I skipped ahead two grades) Finally I looked behind me and realized she was catching up.  At this point I broke into a full run. I heard her yelling out, "Hey, wait a minute!"  Finally, I ran out of steam and she caught up to me.  She introduced herself and we were friends from that day.  Melody, if you ever read this. I want you to know you were my first and my best friend.  You took my eccentricities in stride and never poked fun at or laughed at me for being different.  I wish I had kept in touch with you after we moved apart, but I am still thinking about you to this day and wishing you every success!  Thank you for being my first real friend.
   I think about her often(and also laugh to myself about how silly that scene must have been) I had another really good friend who I think about a lot as well.  A boy name Mel.  He was awesome.  He reminded me of Encyclopedia Brown.  That kid was sharp! He was a really kind little boy and we were in class together.  I don't know what happened to him or to Melody.  But they touched my life forever.  I think I will probably remember them unto my death.  They just made me feel like I mattered and made it more bearable to go to school everyday.  To a six year old transplant it meant everything in the world to be accepted by and befriended by two kids who could have pushed me to the outside for fear of what people may think of them.  Mel, thank you for being my friend and just always pushing me to be more curious. I don't think you realized how very much I needed a friend and that your character and even your integrity would remain a testimony for me forever.
      I know we hear a lot about bullies and I am not saying we shouldn't do more to keep that from happening, but I think too it is important to focus on the good relationships we do have and encourage young people to find them and build them up with others.  I know that having a few good friends in school made those days when I was being picked on and made fun of truly liveable.  My question to you out there is this: Did you have any school friends who you still think about even though the friendship has faded? I'd love to hear about it so shoot me a comment.

Blessings,
3viee

A few of my favorite things...

Since I will be having my "Favorite Things" party in just about two weeks, I thought I would share with you a few of those things here.  Lately, one of my most favorite things is checking out a couple of books on tape and listening to them as I hit the gym, do chores, have a little quiet time.  Right now I am listening to, The Help and Anna Karenina.  I am enjoying both so much.  I have in the wings and ready to go, The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe and Tom Sawyer for Bearcat.  For myself and Big Daddy, Cornelia Funkes', Inkheart, Inkspell and Inkdeath after Bearcat has gone to bed and we are quietly sitting working on our separate projects, but still in the same room.
      I just recently learned to knit and while I secretly think crochet will always be a love of mine(mostly because of the instant gratification of it) I am slowly learning to enjoy the process of knitting. The drape of the fabric as it is being knit up is a thing of beauty. Also relearning the tunisian crochet my TT taught me. It is a really enriching process and if you are like me(need to keep your hands busy most of the time) you may really enjoy any of these fiber art crafts. Some of my very favorite yarns are from CakeWalk Yarns(just learned that Cake Walk Yarns is no longer in selling their gorgeous yarn!), Madeline Tosh and Wollmeise.
     I never really thought I would say this, but one of my favorite things is actually working out.  I get this great feeling afterwards and feel really mentally clear. Right now I usually do two or three days of water aerobics in the morning. My treat is nice, long, quiet shower afterwards.  Haha, can you tell I'm a mom?  It's a luxury, I tell ya!
     Favorite foods: Well, at this time it might seem really strange to say after saying I enjoy working out. I love homemade chocolate sauce. Dark. Chocolate. Sauce.  Need I say more? Oh, and it takes about five minutes to make. Five minutes! Seriously, I do not know why I never made this stuff before it is so good. Other favorite foods lately, Big Daddy's saag and his potato dish that he makes. Super spicy, but sooo good. I also love my grilled tomato and cheese at Panera Bread. Yum, I splurge about once a week there.
     Well, that is about it for now, looking forward to sharing more with you all later.

Be Blessed,
3viee

Clean Slate and My Favorite Things

Announcements, announcements, announcements!

First, I have been sort of thinking about restarting this blog. So, I deleted all my old posts.  A whole year and a half's worth of them. I just really needed a fresh start. I hope you will join me as I learn more about this awesome state I live in. I am really looking forward to just letting this be a place where I can journal about the goings on of a mid-western girl and her family.
     Secondly, my beautiful, quirky cousin and I have been planning a combined 31st birthday party! A, My Favorite Things Party.  I wanted to throw one for my 30th and it just didn't happen. Since our birthdays are only two months apart we decided that this year we would celebrate together. Well, again this year it almost didn't happen. A few days before my planned get-together I had an awful sinus infection that had me out for a while, until almost Christmas.  Then after that we had the usual holiday hustle and bustle. Then it just seemed one thing after another was going to keep us from throwing this party. That nasty cold/flu thing that was going around passed between everybody in this house at least twice before we got rid of it.  Then she moved.  We were not to be deterred though. Friends, good times and cupcakes have persevered.  We are finally on April 6, having our Favorite Things party! I looked around at a lot of blogs and got so many great ideas.  I may give you a sneak peak of some of the great things going on later on this weekend(if I can ever figure out how to load photos onto this blog, hahaha) I am so excited about this party I squee just about every. single. day. No kidding. Well I have to keep some of it secret for now, can't have the guests knowing all the details now can I?  Be well.

3viee