My Blog Award

1. Copy and paste the award on your blog.
2. List who gave you the award and use a link to her blog.
3. List 10 things that make you happy.
4. Pass the award on to other bloggers and visit their blog to let them know.


Ten Things That Make Me Happy
1. My husband. Even though we lose patience with each other on occasion, we have endured a lot and managed to come through it together. He is generous and wonderful, and I too often take him for granted.
2. My daughter. I look at her and can't imagine how she came from Duane and me. Her personality has flourished so much in the last year, and she really is just an easy kid. She doesn't fuss too much (though she has phases of clinginess) and she sleeps easily at night. She is beautiful and full of life and I thank God every day that she is healthy.
3. My friends. If you know me, you know it takes a lot for me to let you in. I will be friendly to just about anyone, but I don't trust easily and I am very guarded. So my friends are very special to me, because they know me and know my ways and put up with me and all my sarcasm.

4. My jobs. Yes, plural. My first job sustains us, and I really do enjoy it, because I house more knowledge about our products than most people could ever hope to. My second job has helped us get back on track to being normal people who can go to dinner without worrying about where the money is coming from. On that note, my husband's job makes me happy because it was the lifeline we needed at a very rough time and it holds MUCH potential for the future.
5. Shopping for my "new" car. I am very much looking forward to purchasing it, after test-driving a Honda Pilot yesterday. I am admittedly nervous though, as I was very uneasy driving a car that is not my Accord. I have grown to be a part of my car, so that I know just how to steer to take a turn with ease.
6. Buckeye football. The spring game was a horrible tease for the upcoming season, and I can't wait to go to a Thursday night game in September. I am even thinking of planning an away-game trip.
7. Thinking about redecorating Rachel's new room this summer. I am by no means talented at this, but I am excited to make a better room for her, now that we know more about her personality.
8. Thinking of future children we may have, if we are so blessed to have them. Not just yet, but maybe soon.
9. Online TV/audiobooks. I love listening to these as I get ready in the morning or while I am at work, doing something mindless.
10. Making cakes in my spare time. Though this is extremely stressful to me, it is always fun to see how they turn out.

I'm passing this on to...

Allison, my very wonderful friend who always has such sweet things to say

Easter & Anniversary

We had a lovely Easter, but something wasn't quite right about it for me because we didn't get to visit my family. Overall though, I think it was nice. We did go to church and brunch with my parents, but a scheduling glitch meant that we didn't get to visit with any extended family.
Rachel had a fun time playing with her cousin Caden and searching for her Easter basket, as it is the tradition in my in-laws' family to hide easter baskets and have people find their own.
Last weekend, Duane was at the racetrack for another motorcycle race, so Rachel and I hung out and relaxed. I didn't get enough done around the house, but I got it pretty clean in his absence. I also made a cake for a friend's daughter's First Communion. I don't generally do that, but this particular friend is the daughter of some very dear family friends who have done a lot for Duane and me. So a cake was the least I could do! I was very worried about it, because First Communion is a very big deal, but it turned out okay. I even made some roses!
Speaking of roses, Thursday was our 4-year anniversary. I wasn't sure if I should mention this to Duane or test him about whether he remembered. Thursday morning, Duane gave me a kiss before he left for work and I said "Happy Anniversary." He obviously hadn't remembered, because he said "Today is the 22nd." To which I replied "Yes, we got married on the 22nd." To be fair, my birthday and Rachel's birthday are both on the 23rd of their respective months, and I think he got confused. But he went out and got me a dozen roses and a beautiful card, so all is well!
This week is his birthday and I just ordered his birthday gift, so I am very excited to see what he thinks.
This weekend we have Quentin's birthday party and we are going out with some friends tomorrow evening. Then Sunday I was supposed to walk in the March for Babies, but unfortunately that fell through. But I raised more than half of my individual goal, which isn't terribly considering what I did last year.
We have decided to try to trade in Duane's car for something new. I was going to get a new car next year and trade in my Honda, but Duane wants to get something that can haul his trailer now, so he is willing to sacrifice his car and drive my Honda so we don't have to pick up an extra car payment. We are looking at Acura MDXs, Honda Pilots, and possible a Kia Sorento. All seem pretty comparable in their reviews, so it just comes down to what kind of deal we can get. :)

Darth Cake

It was designed based on this:

And turned out like this:

What do you think? The bottom cake was meant to be smaller because she didn't need as much cake.