7 Things We Learned This Week (play, animals, Google+, news, relationships)

Play

Over at the Conscious Cat I learned that there is actually an National Institute For Play!

You can discover more about a person in an hour of play than in a year of conversation.--Plato

I love to play tennis, with my pets, box games and review games with my Sunday School Class. What do you like to play?

Howler Monkeys

The male Howler Monkeys are black but the female and young ones are tan. Howler monkeys are so loud, they can be heard up to two miles away!

Google+

I guess if Facebook isn't enough for you or you are dissatisfied with it, an alternative is Google+. Mrs. 4444 posted a great tutorial about it. She also invited me to join but I'm still debating if I want to get on yet another social network. She says she loves Google+ so far.

Which Animal?

So far a goat is the animal of choice for our Heifer International donation. Please vote in our poll at the left if you haven't yet for the animal you would like us to donate and be sure to comment on our blogs so we can get enough for one of these bigger animals.

Jaycee Dugard

Did you see the special about Jaycee Dugard this week?  It was the first I heard about this unbelievable story.  We watched the special about Jaycee Dugard, a girl kidnapped at age 11 while going to her bus stop, abused, raped, and held captive for 18 years before she was finally reunited with her family. She wrote a book about her experience called A Stolen Life which Gerard is on the waiting list for at the library. If you didn't see the show, here is a short video about it:

pets

When Abby rolls around on the grass, sometimes her leash comes off! Today I am taking her to get one of those micro chips so if she ever does get lost, a vet or shelter can scan her and find out where she belongs.

Men vs. Women

From The Happiness Project, by Gretchen Rubin a tidbit I learned that was interesting to me is

the difference in how men and women approach intimacy. . . . women's idea of an intimate moment is a face-to-face conversation, while men feel close when they work or play sitting alongside someone.

So, for men, just watching TV together is quality time for them.  There are lots of ideas to increase your happiness level and interesting research and quotes in this book that I won in a giveaway from Ann at Up North.  Check out Gretchen's website about the project at www.happiness-project.com.

Find more Friday Fragments or link up your own at Half-Past Kissin' Time.

One Simple Act Made Quite An Impact

 (Me at Beulah Beach-1964, age 10)

On Facebook this week, Ryan M. said I am one of six people other than family who significantly impacted his life. It made me feel so good when I read this. I remember the very nice thank-you note he sent to me when he returned from a week at Beulah Beach Camp. I have personally been involved both as a camper and as a counselor at Beulah Beach in the past and know what a tremendous impact it can have so like to sponsor kids to go there. Ryan was in high school at the time and was very brave to go alone. Here is what he wrote about it on Facebook:

Karen: We don't even really know each other, but she single handedly changed the entire course of my life. One random act of kindness to sponsor me to go on a simple trip set off a chain of events that continue to impact me. Because of the people I met on that trip - which I never would have taken had she not randomly and anonymously sponsored - resulted in me meeting friends for life, finding the school I would attend (which would allow me to meet Tom, see above), and my potential mate. Quite an impact."

This got me thinking of the people other than family who have significantly impacted my life and I thought I would write about them in another post. Although some have gone to be with the Lord, others are still living and it may make them feel good to know they have made a significant impact on my life.

You don't always get to know what God will do with one simple act of kindness shown someone or what it will mean to them. It sure is nice though when you do get to know about it.  Thanks, Ryan, for letting me know! Keep showing kindness to others. I try to do a kind deed for someone every day, some days, even more than one!  I like to surprise people.

Debbie Mecomber's book, One Simple Act--Discovering The Power Of Generosity is all about impacting others through generosity.  (click the link to se my review of it.)  It's a great book!  I highly recommend it!

For best posts of the week, check out Saturday Samplings.

Chess Always Reminds Me Of My First Crush

Do you remember your first crush? Mine was on Dale, the son of one of my mom’s best friends. Our families used to get together sometimes for holidays and picnics. He had a sister my age and an older brother. I thought he was very good looking and he was always nice to me. I was maybe three to five years younger than him. I liked him because he was the first person to show me how to throw a football and also taught me how to play Chess. When our families got together, we would play. I remember beating him with my rook a few times. I thought it was so great that he paid attention to me.

I remember going to his wedding thinking he was making a big mistake. His bride actually cried all through the ceremony! I thought, “poor Dale.” The only reason I think he married her was because he got into a car accident with her and she had to be hospitalized for some time. I think he just felt guilty. The marriage didn’t last very long and I felt bad for him all over again. I never saw him again after he got married.

I always liked the game of Chess and to this day think of Dale whenever I play it. It's a game of pure strategy and thinking ahead with some manipulating which helps. There is really no luck involved like in most other games. Do you play Chess? Do you remember who taught you?

Since I love the game of Chess, I just had to take this quiz from blogthings on "If you were on a chess board, would you be a queen or a pawn?"

It said I am a Bishop

You are limited in what kind of moves you make, but that only encourages you to be wilier. If you sit back and think carefully, you can be just as deadly as any of the other players on the board. It's all about using your head. While it does get annoying to be underestimated all the time, you can use that to your advantage. You can attack and retreat quickly, without anyone hardly noticing. As far as skills go, that's an excellent one to have! I am happy to be a bishop. I like that piece even though it can only move diagonally. The only pieces I like better is my rook and of course, my queen.

What Chess Piece Are You? click here to take the quiz

and please share your result in the comments.

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What Type Do You Fall For?

This quiz is right on the money for me. Gerard and I met on November 16, 2006 for the first time at a Pizza Hut. Here is the link to the post about how we found each other: Our Anniversary Of The Day We Met. (Find other posts about us under the "About Us" tab at top).

You Fall for the Guy or Girl Next Door Type

You think that people make love too complicated, and what you want in a partner happens to be pretty simple. You're content with someone who's nice, attractive, honest, and normal. So how come that's so hard to find? You are fairly traditional, and you value security in relationships more than most people. It's important for you to find someone loyal. When you find the right person, you don't expect much from him or her. You're just happy to be together.

Click here to find out What Type You Fall For

Share your results in the comments and let me know if that's the type you married.

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Who Holds The Power In Your Relationship?

After being married for 12 years now, we have learned to compromise and work together well I think. This quiz backs that up.

You Both Wear the Pants in Your Relationship

You and your sweetie seem to have stuck the perfect power balance. It's not that you don't disagree - it's just that you've learned how to compromise well. You're both mature enough to know that you can't always get your way... And usually, you're both adult enough to reach an agreement - even if that sometimes means giving in a little.

Who Wears the Pants in Your Relationship?

When You Fall In Love, What Side of Brain Do You Use?

Take this little quiz to find out. Here are my results and I feel they hit the nail on the head.

You Are Left Brained in Love

When it comes to love, you try to be as rational as possible. Your head doesn't lead you astray. You believe that love should never be blind, and you're not the type to get swept away easily. You are a cool customer when you fall for someone. You are able to look at things directly. You believe the honesty is key to a good relationship. You also try to be dependable and trustworthy.

Are You Right Brained or Left Brained in Love? click here to take the quiz

and share your results in the comments.

The Five Love Languages by Gary Chapman

The Five Love Languages is a practical book for improving one’s marriage. It points out that different things are more meaningful than others when it comes to expressing love but they are different for different people. Loving acts can fall into the following five basic categories:

• words of affirmation
• quality time
• acts of service
• gifts
• physical touch

Once you determine what your mate’s primary love language is, you can work at keeping them feeling loved more effectively. It’s also good to determine your own primary love language and let your mate know. Several things I plan to implement after reading this book are:

1. Focus on encouraging, complimenting and using kind words every day when speaking to my husband.


2. Have a sharing time each day where we each share three things that happened to us that day and how we feel about them.


3. Make a list of things we want to do together and do at least two per month.


4. Plan a new event with strong memory potential and do it this year.


5. Play “fill your tank” game. Ask spouse three times a week how full his love tank is on range of 0-10 and ask what I can do to fill it up today.

I had a hard time determining my primary love language because really my husband does all these things so I feel very loved. Here is a quiz you can take to help determine which one is most meaningful to you. By answering some concrete questions, for my physical touch was definitely my primary language and three of the others were tie. I was also surprised to find out that Gerard's primary love language is quality time. Guess I'll have to get off the computer earlier in the evenings!

Want to find out what your primary love language is and more importantly, your mate's? Click here to take the quiz.

God's At Work In Our Daily Lives--What A Week!

Sometimes problems can be blessings as I discovered last week. When problems arise, we need to ask "What is God trying to teach me through this?" Here are three examples:

WEDNESDAY: No Bible Study Tonight

This has been one unusual week for us. I was looking forward to starting my new Bible Study at church on "The Excellent Wife" by Martha Peace when the snow came at rush hour. My husband called when he got home 20 minutes later than usual to tell me how bad the roads were. I knew he didn't want me going out to church. He told me it would probably be canceled and I should call the church to make sure they were still having it before going.

Having started reading the book, I read about how our husbands should be our first ministry. That's right, even above Bible studies! I also had just finished reading how important it is to show respect for our husbands by being submissive to them and that being submissive is a good thing. God has placed the husband over the wife for the wife's protection. So, naturally, when I was talking with Gerard on the phone, in the back of my mind, these words kept coming up.

I called the church as he suggested and found that it was still on. I asked the church secretary to give Nora the message that I wouldn't be there tonight because my husband didn't want me to go and I was being an "excellent wife." I knew she'd understand. As it turned out, my bus was very late and running very slow. I got home at 7:15 and the Bible Study started at 7 p.m. It took me two hours and 15 minutes to get home from work. Even though I felt bad I missed the first discussion on this book, I had peace about it because I knew in my heart that I honored my husband and did the right thing. Getting home that late just made it much easier to accept. God is good!

THURSDAY: When The Lens Pops Out, It's Time For New Glasses

It was in single digits today, extremely cold out with snow all over. When I was having my morning devotions, I heard my husband yell, "Oh NO!" I came down to find that his lens popped out of his glasses. He stuck it back in. However, after taking the garbage out and scraping the ice off his car, he noticed it was out again when he came inside. He was very upset and was determined to go to work anyway.

Again, what I had just read in "The Excellent Wife" popped into my head. Be a "Suitable helper" to your husband. Tha is my calling. So, I gently begged him not do drive with only one lens and said I'd go look for it at least. He ate while I took the flashlight and looked in the snow where he had walked while asking God to please help me find it. Well, I didnt find it.

I gave Gerard two suggestions: (1) I would take off work too and we would go get him new glasses today and he could go in later if he wanted to; or (2) he could ride to work with his boss who lives just a few house up the street and wear his sunglasses all day and go get new ones for him that evening. I was glad he had calmed down enough to choose the first option.

He got new glasses and I didn't have to wait for the bus on this frigid cold day. We both went to workout during the afternoon rather than having to go out at night. He didn't go into work because it was well into the afternoon before the glasses were ready. At least he got them the same day though and said he can see better now. Things seem bigger!

Perhaps this was God's way of getting us to finally spend the money for his new glasses. Fortunately, he had the prescription he got just last summer so he didn't need an eye appointment. I thank God that it happened at the beginning of the day rather than when he was at work or driving. What a blessing!

FRIDAY: Frozen Pipes--Plumber To The Rescue

When I went to give the cats fresh water from our bathroom off the den, no cold water came out, just the hot. This happened before and after a few tries it worked, so I tried again . . . and again . . . and again. Ooops, I'm thinking, oh no. It must be frozen. I hope our pipes don't break. I called our regular plumber (we seem to have plumbing problems often) and he confirmed my fear. He said there's nothing he can do until someone gets home, but he would come tonight if it still wasn't working.

When Gerard got home from work, he called the plumber and he arrived just after I got in. The bad news is that we need to get our attic which contains our upstairs pipes insulated this spring, but the good news is that our pipes didn't break. He just turned off the water going up there so it wouldn't happen again and said when we want it back on to call him and he'd come over and get it back on for us. We can easily manage without using that bathroom for a couple months.

Praise God he watches out for us and for once, I did something right!

Would You Be a Good Spouse?

You Would Be a Good Spouse 100% of the Time

You have what it takes to be an amazing wife or husband. You are caring, patient, giving, and romantic. You are willing to work for a marriage. More than anything, you're not about to let your ego ruin a relationship. You are humble and unselfish. And that's the key to being a good spouse.

Take this little quiz to find out if you would be a good spouse.

click here-Would You Be a Good Wife or Husband?

Our Anniversary of the Day We Met

Each year we "celebrate" the day we first met which was November 16, 1996. I wrote in a previous post about Gerard and I finding each other through Great Expectations. Today we will share with you about our first face-to-face date.

Gerard says:
November 16, 1996 started out like any other Saturday, but turned out it changed my whole life. I was getting frustrated at Great Expectations. Had been there for awhile and nothing! Finally, that day I found out one of the women I had chosen was willing to meet me! I was very excited. I picked many before, but they ALL rejected me. I washed my car as usual and tried to call Karen twice but she was not home so I left a message on her answering machine.

She called back and we decided to meet at a Pizza Hut in Garfield Heights that evening. I got some flowers for her on a whim. I wanted her to remember me and decided to mix up the colors. I got there first and waited outside and she came! Instant attraction for me. Karen was easy to talk to and I wasn't nervous at all.

Karen says:
I was happy to be going to Pizza Hut because I liked pizza and didn't like fancy restaurants. When I pulled in and saw him standing out front in his Ohio State Buckeye hat and jacket with a dozen roses, I thought WOW! How sweet of him. It was the first time anyone ever gave me flowers so I was pretty impressed.

We had an easy time talking. He was a good conversationalist and I wasn't really nervous at all. I was looking for a nice normal guy and Gerard seemed to be just that. I mentioned I wanted to get a gift for a kid for Christmas so Gerard suggested we walk over to the Marc's that was nearby. There we found a cute little stuffed dog which I named "Snoozer." I liked it so well though that later we got another one for me!

On our way out, I saw he had a real nice looking Camero and between the roses and car, I just assumed he must have a lot of money (wrong!). He had car payments. It was the best looking car in the lot!

Gerard Says:
When we left, I remember telling her to drive carefully and her saying, "No, I'm going to back right into that car." I went back home and watched Dr. Quinn. Karen called me on the phone to tell me she really enjoyed meeting me. I was ecstatic about that and figured I made a good impression for her to call me that same night. Went to bed happy and we began seeing each other every week. I asked if she wanted to go with me to the dinner event that Great Expectations was having for all their members and she said okay, even though she didn't think it would be much fun--she was right!

True Love

Gerard was not feeling well last Tuesday evening and got a sore throat. We went to bed and he kept moaning, groaning and bouncing and neither of us could sleep. He said he needed some throat lozengers. So, at 12:30 a.m. I got out of bed, got dressed and drove up to the Giant Eagle nearby which is open 24 hours. I was back in half an hour with Kleenex, Halls lozengers and orange juice. Finally, we got some sleep! I was happy when he announced he was not going to work on Wednesday. I didn't even have to try convincing him to stay home. It was a cold, rainy day and he took it easy and was feeling much better by the weekend.

Love is action. Love is a choice, not just a feeling. It is sacrificial. It is thinking about the other person and putting their needs above your own. I'm sure he would have done the same for me if the situation were reversed.

I Married Mr. Wonderful!

I was a very satisfied, happy single for a very long time. Gerard and I didn't get married until I was 43 (he was 44), so we were both set in our ways by then. Although our daily schedules were quite different, I am so thankful that God let us find each other through Great Expectations (more about that in another post). August 30 will be our 11th anniversary and neither of us regret getting married. When I was considering it, I really wish there was some sort of guaranty, but there wasn't.

Gerard's been very supportive, patient and understanding about me spending so much time on the computer blogging, so I thought it's time I write about him and us. I thought I'd share just why Gerard is my "Mr. Wonderful" so other husbands can pick up some tips:

1) He usually meets me at the bus stop when I come home from work and we either walk if it's nice or he brings the car if it's cold or rainy.

2) He lets me be my own person. I let him know before I was married I didn't cook and he never expects me to. (He said he's used to cooking for himself anyhow so he didn't mind continuing to do so.)

3) He always opened doors for me before we were married (car, restaurants, church) which at first I thought was silly, but it was nice to be treated so nicely. He still does this if I don't rush ahead and do it myself.

4) He helps me with my jacket or coat when we're out together.

5) He does ALL the cleaning--some everyday, including the basement! He has a weekly schedule that he adheres to no matter what--even if he is sick. Once in awhile, I'll take care of cleaning the computer.

6) He does the laundry every Friday.

7) He takes care of the yardwork. Sometimes, if I get in the mood, I'll pull some weeds or trim a bush, but he really does it on a regular basis. He lets me have the fun of picking out the flowers to plant in the spring, then he waters them all summer long and I watch them grow!

8) He helps me carry things. Usually on Sundays since I teach Sunday School, I have a lot to carry and he'll load the car ahead for me.

9) He does the grocery shopping, usually alone. Sometimes I'll go along with him but not too often since we got the computer.

10) He surprises me with unusual presents and has great taste in clothes for me. Ninety percent of my wardrobe are clothes Gerard bought for me! I let him know what I like and don't like in clothes and he remembers EVERYTHING!

11) He listens to me!

12) He reviews the TV schedule and alerts me to shows that he knows or thinks interest me.

13) As he reads magazines and the newspaper, he'll share articles that he thinks I may enjoy or find interesting.

14) He lets me make out our budget and have complete control of our finances! What trust he puts in me! I'm so glad he doesn't like fussing with banking or investing, because I do. (Before we were married, he was in some credit card debt--I never was in credit card debt so this was a concern of mine. More on this in a future blog).

15) He is a neat freak, which I prefer to messy. He keeps our house in perfect order as much as possible with me in it.

16) He is kind to our pets and is just as attached to them as I am.

17) He is easy to get along with--as long as he has music or a talk show on the radio or is watching one of his Boston sports teams, he's perfectly happy.

18) He lets me make decisions concerning repairs, decorating and social engagements.

19) He's faithful and a steady worker.

20) He loves ME!

What do you appreciate about your spouse?