Interview with Ben - original March 5, 2009 new answers are in bold... 1/16/2012
Robert Benjamin McKinney
1. What is something your mama always says to you? Be sweet I love you!
2. What makes your mom happy? Bein Sweet When I clean up my room!
3. What makes your mom sad? ugly When I am disrespectful (wow...smart boy)
4. How does your mom make you laugh? she tickle me (talking about the cat)
5. What was your mom like as a child? what does that mean? (I don't know)
6. How old is your mom? I don't know (40!)
7. How tall is your mom? 6 pounds (where is a tape measure? 38 feet and 2 in)
8. What is your mom's favorite thing to do? for me to be sweet and for you to clean up (playing with the cat)
9. What does your mom do when you're not around? wash and clean (clean up)
10. If your mom becomes famous, what will it be for? casue if somebody was mean to you (what?) (riding a 4-wheeler)
11. What is your mom really good at? typing (playing scrabble)
12. What is your mom not very good at? riding four-wheelers (nothing)...he loves me!
13. What does your mom do for her job? clean up (teach special ed)
14. What is your mom's favorite food? salad (tuna salad)
15. What makes you proud of your mom? what did you say? (cause you play with me and ride four wheelers)
16. If your mom were a cartoon character, who would she be? firefighter? (Peggy Hill)
17. What do you and your mom do together? clean up my room (blow off the driveway and work, rake leaves, cut grass)
18. How are you and your mom the same? cause we are happy (We both have blonde hair and we are both fat)....okay- that hurt!
19. How are you and your mom different? cause my face is different and your eyes are green and mine are blue and i got a tail and you got a monkey We don't have the same color eyes, you are a girl, and you are married
20. How do you know your mom loves you? cause im sweet (cause she says it)
21. Where is your mom's favorite place to go? the fair (what?) Okay I have raised a crazy child!
Monday, January 16, 2012
Monday~ January 16, 2012 Dinner
May I suggest a WONDERFUL dinner:
Browsing the grocery store today, I found this AND had a coupon! I tried it on pork chops and it was DELICIOUS! I had 8 pork chops in hopes of having extra for my lunch tomorrow... nada is what I have in my kitchen right now! I think there are three different flavors~ anything can be mixed with them... chicken, beef, pork, or fish! This was the most conservative~ I will be picking these up again. The best part about it is the bag has the cheese and herbs all ready to mix and there is no messy clean-up!
Thursday, January 12, 2012
January 12, 2012 ~ Thursday Thirteen
1. I have just arrived home from two different conferences...one in Athens and one in Atlanta... I am declaring I am a country girl. So glad to drive into Lincoln County and be in my house! Even more excited that by 7:00 I plan to be in my bed, with my pillow, with my tv, and my blanket!
2. I did something last night for the first time ever.... I ate at a "chain" restaurant... and it was delicious! Just kidding... I ate bison. First of all, I remember discussing with Leah once how she didn't do "chain" restaurants. Once hearing her explanation...I understood. I also know that Mark's main goal when traveling is to try different things and don't go where you can normally go. Last night, we ate at Ted Turner's Montana Grill in downtown Atlanta. I was brave and ordered the bison. Honestly, I couldn't tell the difference in bison and beef.... but it was the BEST meal I have had in a long time!
3. I couldn't be more thrilled that tomorrow is Friday. The powers at be who created our school calendar did not make the smartest decision (in my opinion) that we started back to school on a Monday...yes, I know that is the beginning of a school week...but after three weeks off, these children needed to transition smoothly with two or three days! Thank goodness we have MLK day Monday!
4. I finished a Z-Pac yesterday.... my head still feels heavy. Sinuses... I don't like you!
5. Report cards came out today... I am proud of my children!
6. We don't have any plans this weekend.... that sounds great! (I do have a bb game, but I enjoy those and that won't take an entire day)
7. One of the conferences I went to yesterday made me appreciate where I teach and work every day. There really are some idiots in the world.... I am so glad I am perfect~
8. As I am typing this, my family is watching Toddlers and Tiaras. First of all, those mamas really want to be in the pageant. Secondly, I have been labeled this week as being similar to a six year old on the show... Honey boo boo child...I don't holla for a dolla! I am going to get the labeler back! Finally, why didn't I think of this show! I could be rich!
9. I still have some people's Christmas cards...S a d. Enough said about that!
10. Mark made me watch a movie this week that I can't get off my mind... Lovely, Still. Someone should have won an award for it. It is so real! As much as I hated the subject, it is so, so real!
11. My body is adjusting to being back at work this week. Monday night I stayed up until midnight watching the ballgame, Tuesday night I stayed up laughing at all of us cramming to get ready for our presentation, and last night it was a late night due to having to wait so long for dinner. I need sleep.
12. I lost 6.6 lbs last week on WW. It works...I still have a ways to go, but every little bit helps.
13. Tonight I have a feeling of homesickness in my stomach. Really stupid, but when I got home a friend was over to take my sewing machine off my hands. Her college-aged daughter was with her. We were discussing that she had to go back to school next week to start a new semester. Most people wouldn't understand this, but the daughter started crying. Only people who know what that feeling is would understand... I wanted to hug her...I wanted to cry with her... I wanted to help her get over it.... BUT there is nothing anyone can do to make it better. It is just a time in life that makes someone love home more than ever. I didn't tell her that she better be hoping she doesn't marry a man that will take her away for 11 years from her hometown! Just teasing...that was a great time for Mark and me. It was the best thing that could have ever happened to us. I do feel bad for her though~ Watch over her, God...and her mama too... cause I can't even imagine when KB leaves for school. Brings tears to my eyes to think about it~ sniff, sniff.
2. I did something last night for the first time ever.... I ate at a "chain" restaurant... and it was delicious! Just kidding... I ate bison. First of all, I remember discussing with Leah once how she didn't do "chain" restaurants. Once hearing her explanation...I understood. I also know that Mark's main goal when traveling is to try different things and don't go where you can normally go. Last night, we ate at Ted Turner's Montana Grill in downtown Atlanta. I was brave and ordered the bison. Honestly, I couldn't tell the difference in bison and beef.... but it was the BEST meal I have had in a long time!
3. I couldn't be more thrilled that tomorrow is Friday. The powers at be who created our school calendar did not make the smartest decision (in my opinion) that we started back to school on a Monday...yes, I know that is the beginning of a school week...but after three weeks off, these children needed to transition smoothly with two or three days! Thank goodness we have MLK day Monday!
4. I finished a Z-Pac yesterday.... my head still feels heavy. Sinuses... I don't like you!
5. Report cards came out today... I am proud of my children!
6. We don't have any plans this weekend.... that sounds great! (I do have a bb game, but I enjoy those and that won't take an entire day)
7. One of the conferences I went to yesterday made me appreciate where I teach and work every day. There really are some idiots in the world.... I am so glad I am perfect~
8. As I am typing this, my family is watching Toddlers and Tiaras. First of all, those mamas really want to be in the pageant. Secondly, I have been labeled this week as being similar to a six year old on the show... Honey boo boo child...I don't holla for a dolla! I am going to get the labeler back! Finally, why didn't I think of this show! I could be rich!
9. I still have some people's Christmas cards...S a d. Enough said about that!
10. Mark made me watch a movie this week that I can't get off my mind... Lovely, Still. Someone should have won an award for it. It is so real! As much as I hated the subject, it is so, so real!
11. My body is adjusting to being back at work this week. Monday night I stayed up until midnight watching the ballgame, Tuesday night I stayed up laughing at all of us cramming to get ready for our presentation, and last night it was a late night due to having to wait so long for dinner. I need sleep.
12. I lost 6.6 lbs last week on WW. It works...I still have a ways to go, but every little bit helps.
13. Tonight I have a feeling of homesickness in my stomach. Really stupid, but when I got home a friend was over to take my sewing machine off my hands. Her college-aged daughter was with her. We were discussing that she had to go back to school next week to start a new semester. Most people wouldn't understand this, but the daughter started crying. Only people who know what that feeling is would understand... I wanted to hug her...I wanted to cry with her... I wanted to help her get over it.... BUT there is nothing anyone can do to make it better. It is just a time in life that makes someone love home more than ever. I didn't tell her that she better be hoping she doesn't marry a man that will take her away for 11 years from her hometown! Just teasing...that was a great time for Mark and me. It was the best thing that could have ever happened to us. I do feel bad for her though~ Watch over her, God...and her mama too... cause I can't even imagine when KB leaves for school. Brings tears to my eyes to think about it~ sniff, sniff.
Monday, January 9, 2012
Ben to Katie Britt
As I am fussing at Ben about things he shouldn't do... like burp, roll his eyes at me, stick his neck out and turn his head, play like he can't hear me.... you get the picture... he tells KB as she starts in on him too... "Sis, you don't have a dog in this fight!"
I want to remember these things he says...(Seems like his daddy may have said that to him... just the other day!
I want to remember these things he says...(Seems like his daddy may have said that to him... just the other day!
Thursday, January 5, 2012
Thursday Thirteen January 5, 2012
1. As the old saying says..."All good things must come to an end"... today is the last day of Christmas vacation. When I think back to the last 20 something days, I can't believe the fun and excitement we have had. Our family has been to Gatlinburg, celebrated a birthday, been to the emergency room, celebrated Christmas, ridden four-wheelers for hours, brought in the New Year with family and friends... and most importantly we have taken advantage of being together as a family~ whether it be staying in our pajamas all day and watching television or going to see Santa Claus, we have spent our vacation together. Thinking back to the Christmas vacations since I have been married, this has been the most RELAXING one yet. Thank you God for that!
2. I start my mornings (and end my days) by watching televison. I flip back and forth between Good Morning America and The Today Show. Several things I have noticed... on cooking segments... they never give enough time. My thoughts are to either make an easier recipe...or allow more time. Cookie Monster and Elmo are totally interupting George this morning... by the way...he is so short and I never realized that! I do like the cast of Good Morning America better now!
3. I haven't watched my soaps since the summer due to a heavy workload. I am totally hooked again this week. It is a good thing that we go back to school or I would almost be tempted to watch again everyday. I am thrilled that Bold and Beautiful have moved on and let some other young ones come on the show. Brooke and Ridge need to stay together and that is it!
4. Another show I watch ~ Kelly~ Rob Lowe is a hotty. Is he going to be to me like Mama says Robert Redford is to her? I am so glad he can't see me sitting in my gown in the bed with my hair looking like a porcupine~
5. It's that time of year to organize, start over, and renew. I have been doing that for five days... I am tired of the organizing!
6. I have said it before, but I really mean it... I would be a terrible stay at home mother. I become lazy, non-productive, and can only wait for the next meal. Tomorrow will be a shock to my body, but I am really excited to get back into a routine. Life will be so much easier. I won't have to clean my house everyday, I won't have three outfits per child to wash, I won't have to decide between two great shows, and I won't have to schedule a nap around my midmorning nap and midafternoon nap. I can honestly say I have caught up on my sleep this vacation!
7. I am so excited about the weekend weather... I usually get excited about snow, but I am excited the temperatures are so supposed to be above 60. I was cold in New York, I was cold in Charlotte, and I was cold in Gatlinburg. I don't want to be cold anymore. Thank the Lord we didn't have to go back to school this week and get out in this frightful weather.
8. I usually think that KB is so much like Mark it is scary. This week we were watching The Biggest Loser, and one of the contestants fell while running to the finish line. She almost fell off my bed laughing about it... she had to rewind it about five times to watch it... and that goofy fake laugh of hers was ever so present. It kills me! But as I sat here, I saw myself... my favorite thing to do is laugh when someone falls. I have many stories that I will save for later, but that may be a new gene for the scientist to look into...the one that passes down from mother to child about laughing at people.
9. I am a little heartbroken this morning. Clemson and the Red Devils have broken my heart this football season. I can't talk about it anymore...except I think that some people need to concentrate on pulling FOR their team instead of AGAINST another team... morons!
10. Back to tv shows.... I miss As the World Turns. I hadn't really cared too much about it going off the air...didn't really watch the last weeks of it, but I am sick of women panels yelling over each other on The Chew, The View, and The Talk...
11. As I read back over this post... HOLY COW... I have been watching too much television!
12. I have been sick this week, but I am planning on starting to do some form of exercise everyday. Walking the halls of the high school is a lot, but I choose not to walk too fast there because I usually have a cup of coffee in my hands. I have got to get to moving! I don't want to be the "fat girl" on the boat this year! Someone has to be that girl, but please don't let it be me!
13. Finally, I would love to be some people's financial advisors... It KILLS me how some people complain about being broke, not having any money, and whining about what they don't have... I would just like to say to them... Have you considered NOT eating out every meal (you post pictures at every restaurant you go to), Have you considered buying your children's clothes at cheaper stores (you brag about shopping namebrand), and have you considered working/getting a job (you are constantly going somewhere so you can't work), and have you considered that professing your religion over and over ~ yet you write bad checks, don't pay your bills, and charge everything is basically lying???....I say all this because I think life is simple... you don't buy something you can't afford, you don't try to keep up with Jones's, and you live within your means... I have a mile long list of things that I want... but I am ever so grateful I have everything I need. Let me please be satisfied with what my household can provide for me... and not be a wisher of things everyday that our family can't afford or don't need to buy! Pay your bills, learn to say no, and be satisfied!
2. I start my mornings (and end my days) by watching televison. I flip back and forth between Good Morning America and The Today Show. Several things I have noticed... on cooking segments... they never give enough time. My thoughts are to either make an easier recipe...or allow more time. Cookie Monster and Elmo are totally interupting George this morning... by the way...he is so short and I never realized that! I do like the cast of Good Morning America better now!
3. I haven't watched my soaps since the summer due to a heavy workload. I am totally hooked again this week. It is a good thing that we go back to school or I would almost be tempted to watch again everyday. I am thrilled that Bold and Beautiful have moved on and let some other young ones come on the show. Brooke and Ridge need to stay together and that is it!
4. Another show I watch ~ Kelly~ Rob Lowe is a hotty. Is he going to be to me like Mama says Robert Redford is to her? I am so glad he can't see me sitting in my gown in the bed with my hair looking like a porcupine~
5. It's that time of year to organize, start over, and renew. I have been doing that for five days... I am tired of the organizing!
6. I have said it before, but I really mean it... I would be a terrible stay at home mother. I become lazy, non-productive, and can only wait for the next meal. Tomorrow will be a shock to my body, but I am really excited to get back into a routine. Life will be so much easier. I won't have to clean my house everyday, I won't have three outfits per child to wash, I won't have to decide between two great shows, and I won't have to schedule a nap around my midmorning nap and midafternoon nap. I can honestly say I have caught up on my sleep this vacation!
7. I am so excited about the weekend weather... I usually get excited about snow, but I am excited the temperatures are so supposed to be above 60. I was cold in New York, I was cold in Charlotte, and I was cold in Gatlinburg. I don't want to be cold anymore. Thank the Lord we didn't have to go back to school this week and get out in this frightful weather.
8. I usually think that KB is so much like Mark it is scary. This week we were watching The Biggest Loser, and one of the contestants fell while running to the finish line. She almost fell off my bed laughing about it... she had to rewind it about five times to watch it... and that goofy fake laugh of hers was ever so present. It kills me! But as I sat here, I saw myself... my favorite thing to do is laugh when someone falls. I have many stories that I will save for later, but that may be a new gene for the scientist to look into...the one that passes down from mother to child about laughing at people.
9. I am a little heartbroken this morning. Clemson and the Red Devils have broken my heart this football season. I can't talk about it anymore...except I think that some people need to concentrate on pulling FOR their team instead of AGAINST another team... morons!
10. Back to tv shows.... I miss As the World Turns. I hadn't really cared too much about it going off the air...didn't really watch the last weeks of it, but I am sick of women panels yelling over each other on The Chew, The View, and The Talk...
11. As I read back over this post... HOLY COW... I have been watching too much television!
12. I have been sick this week, but I am planning on starting to do some form of exercise everyday. Walking the halls of the high school is a lot, but I choose not to walk too fast there because I usually have a cup of coffee in my hands. I have got to get to moving! I don't want to be the "fat girl" on the boat this year! Someone has to be that girl, but please don't let it be me!
13. Finally, I would love to be some people's financial advisors... It KILLS me how some people complain about being broke, not having any money, and whining about what they don't have... I would just like to say to them... Have you considered NOT eating out every meal (you post pictures at every restaurant you go to), Have you considered buying your children's clothes at cheaper stores (you brag about shopping namebrand), and have you considered working/getting a job (you are constantly going somewhere so you can't work), and have you considered that professing your religion over and over ~ yet you write bad checks, don't pay your bills, and charge everything is basically lying???....I say all this because I think life is simple... you don't buy something you can't afford, you don't try to keep up with Jones's, and you live within your means... I have a mile long list of things that I want... but I am ever so grateful I have everything I need. Let me please be satisfied with what my household can provide for me... and not be a wisher of things everyday that our family can't afford or don't need to buy! Pay your bills, learn to say no, and be satisfied!
Monday, January 2, 2012
What's for Dinner?
One of my "ideas" ~ not a resolution because I break those~ is to not eat out the month of January. That means a lot...
1. There has to be some food in the house.
2. There has to be a plan to cook that food.
3. There has to be perfect timing to get it all done!
My reason behind this "idea" is to watch what I am eating since my other "idea" I have is about losing weight this year! Tonight was a dinner that wasn't necessarily planned, but I think it was delicious, healthy, and everyone ate it!
KB browned hamburger meat and took the soft taco dinner box out of the pantry. I cut up lettuce, had shredded cheese, light sour cream, and some cucumbers to make a salad. She ate four tacos and Ben ate three. I should really calculate how much that cost~ I am sure I can save some money not eating out too! Anyway~ it was mighty tasty and I don't think that expensive. I love that KB can cook now. We are still working on the cleaning up the kitchen part!
My point in this post is to say that dinner from start to clean-up took about 50 minutes. That is what I need. With cheerleading and dance, I need some quick meal ideas that children will eat, that are healthy, and that don't involved too much preparation! Anybody want to share? You can leave a comment below.
1. There has to be some food in the house.
2. There has to be a plan to cook that food.
3. There has to be perfect timing to get it all done!
My reason behind this "idea" is to watch what I am eating since my other "idea" I have is about losing weight this year! Tonight was a dinner that wasn't necessarily planned, but I think it was delicious, healthy, and everyone ate it!
KB browned hamburger meat and took the soft taco dinner box out of the pantry. I cut up lettuce, had shredded cheese, light sour cream, and some cucumbers to make a salad. She ate four tacos and Ben ate three. I should really calculate how much that cost~ I am sure I can save some money not eating out too! Anyway~ it was mighty tasty and I don't think that expensive. I love that KB can cook now. We are still working on the cleaning up the kitchen part!
My point in this post is to say that dinner from start to clean-up took about 50 minutes. That is what I need. With cheerleading and dance, I need some quick meal ideas that children will eat, that are healthy, and that don't involved too much preparation! Anybody want to share? You can leave a comment below.
Sunday, January 1, 2012
Wow~ 2012...
I remember when I was little calculating numerous times how old I would be when the year 2000 rolled around~ 29. It seemed like it would take forever for that year to get to here. I dreamed of goals and accomplishments that I would have conquered by that point...some came true~ I was married, I had graduated from college, and I was happy~ some did not~ I never cheered for the Dallas Cowboys, I never got to go to Maine to the LL Bean outlet, and I never worked at the White House. I did, on that night of December 31, 1999, have a little 10 day old baby girl in my hands. We rang in the New Year with a midnight feeding and a quiet night at home. I thought that night that I couldn't be happier!
My children got four-wheelers for Christmas. Yes, they are spoiled... but what child isn't? Growing up in Lincolnton with farmland everywhere and a lake surrounding three sides of the county, I admit that I never used these assets as a child. When I moved away and ran into people who had heard of Lincolnton...they always said something about the land and the water. I regretted not having used them growing up. When we moved back to Lincolnton, I became involved with all these things. The four-wheelers have given me the opportunity to enjoy the lake and land even more!
I have just come in from a weekend of riding four-wheelers and hanging out at the farm. Other than the crick in my neck and a sore back, it was a wonderful weekend. I have laughed, been stuck in the mud, eaten until I am about to blow up, and hopefully made memories that will never be forgotten.
Memories... isn't that all we really have? As I was riding today, I thanked God for the opportunity that I had to ride and enjoy his beautiful earth. Nature...like I had never experienced before. I am sure that Ben didn't worry about God on that trip today or yesterday, but I feel confident that we made a memory for him. My hope is that one day when I might be gone, or too old to ride... he will take his children on those trails and talk about the day that his mama and daddy and fourteen other four-wheelers went riding. I hope that God will allow him this memory and it will warm his heart!
As I am overwhelming myself with lists today...first of the year...new things... clean slates... I have decided that I am going to make a New Year's Resolution that I may be able to keep. This year I hope to make memories with my family. I want them to look back at 2012 and have so many memories! I am going to focus more on spending time with them instead of worrying about cutting out coupons, clothes washing, and lines on the carpet. Old habits are hard to break... in my mind I am saying I am going to give up my couch naps on Sundays, but... just because I did it today...doesn't mean I am sticking to it!
My children got four-wheelers for Christmas. Yes, they are spoiled... but what child isn't? Growing up in Lincolnton with farmland everywhere and a lake surrounding three sides of the county, I admit that I never used these assets as a child. When I moved away and ran into people who had heard of Lincolnton...they always said something about the land and the water. I regretted not having used them growing up. When we moved back to Lincolnton, I became involved with all these things. The four-wheelers have given me the opportunity to enjoy the lake and land even more!
I have just come in from a weekend of riding four-wheelers and hanging out at the farm. Other than the crick in my neck and a sore back, it was a wonderful weekend. I have laughed, been stuck in the mud, eaten until I am about to blow up, and hopefully made memories that will never be forgotten.
Memories... isn't that all we really have? As I was riding today, I thanked God for the opportunity that I had to ride and enjoy his beautiful earth. Nature...like I had never experienced before. I am sure that Ben didn't worry about God on that trip today or yesterday, but I feel confident that we made a memory for him. My hope is that one day when I might be gone, or too old to ride... he will take his children on those trails and talk about the day that his mama and daddy and fourteen other four-wheelers went riding. I hope that God will allow him this memory and it will warm his heart!
As I am overwhelming myself with lists today...first of the year...new things... clean slates... I have decided that I am going to make a New Year's Resolution that I may be able to keep. This year I hope to make memories with my family. I want them to look back at 2012 and have so many memories! I am going to focus more on spending time with them instead of worrying about cutting out coupons, clothes washing, and lines on the carpet. Old habits are hard to break... in my mind I am saying I am going to give up my couch naps on Sundays, but... just because I did it today...doesn't mean I am sticking to it!
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