My Family

We Do like to burn things.

The pile before we started:


The beginning:


Yep, it's right there. See it? Right there.


Pull Melissa, pull. But don't give yourself a black eye.


Three hours later and still going strong:

Beth's Boo Boo

It's not everyday that I have the desire to post pictures of my thigh on the internet. In fact, that never really happens. But since Rebecca asked, here it is. (I have a suspicion that she only wants to make fun of my klutziness, but oh well.)

Here's the story:
My parents are adding on to their house. Monday evening Daddy and I walked out there to see what the workers accomplished for the day. There is a board (4x10?) that you use to get into the new section since it is like 4 feet off the ground. I had just slipped on a pair of momma's shoes to go out there and going up I was fine.
One the way out Davy was at the bottom of the board waiting for us and as I stepped out on the board, daddy said, "Wait a second Davy, Beth will be down to play with you in just a minute." He didn't realize how quickly I would be down on the ground. The board was damp from earlier rain. My right foot slipped and I twisted off to the right. Most of my body landed in (and demolished) a butterfly bush and my left leg came down on the board.
Blood and tears followed quickly. Daddy insisted that we make a trip to the ER in case I needed a couple of stitches and so that they could clean it out well. No stitches were needed, but they did give me pain medication (which made me throw up all day Tuesday).
Here are the pictures that momma took on Tuesday to send to Rebecca and Melissa:
This this the main group of scratches. The dark part at the top is the section that came close to being deep enough for a few stitches.
This one shows that I managed to get my etire leg. You can sort of see the swelling.

And now for your viewing pleasure, this is what it looks like today:

Gross, huh?

103 Things about me

For the past two summers I was pretty good about blogging while I was out of the country. I thought that I might give it another try even though I will be here most of the summer.

To get it started, here are 103 things about me that you may or may not have known:

1. I hiccup.
2. A lot.
3. I hate bananas.
4. I love anything chocolate
5. Except chocolate covered bananas
6. I consider myself to be a smart person.
7. And a funny person.
8. And generally a pretty cool person to be around.
9. I’m also surprisingly insecure.
10. Social situations make me nervous.
11. I have a thing for numbers.
12. I love prime numbers.
13. I once made a roommate change our number because it had too many even numbers.
14. My childhood ambition was to be a pediatrician.
15. I failed biology my sophomore year in college.
16. I use to swear that I would never teach. No matter what I did, it wouldn’t be teaching.
17. I just finished my 4th year teaching.
18. I love coffee.
19. I also love skim milk.
20. I usually read 4 books at once.
21. During the summer, I can average a book every 4 days.
22. My family goes to the beach every year.
23. I love vacations with my family.
24. My favorite vacation was the time we went to Louisiana and just drove around. We went on a tour of a rice cake factory.
25. Also, at Thanksgiving and Christmas, we usually go out to the woods and shoot guns at various inanimate objects.
26. I am the oldest of three girls.
27. Most of the time, I like being the oldest.
28. I adore my sisters. And my parents.
29. I can make fun of them, but I will get ticked if you do.
30. My youngest sister moved to Minnesota this year. I miss her.
31. My middle sister is getting married. I miss her too.
32. I am vain about my eyelashes. They are perfect.
33. I sing loudly.
34. I love to bake.
35. I would love to open my own bakery and make cookies all day.
36. My favorite cookies are ginger snaps.
37. 37 is my favorite number.
38. I love to take baths.
39. I love someone playing with my hair.
40. I would pay someone to wash and brush my hair everyday.
41. seriously
42. I love traveling.
43. I have to take anxiety medication to fly.
44. I have been to 6 foreign countries.
45. I am going to go to 2 more this summer.
46. I wouldn’t mind living overseas at some point in my life.
47. I speak a little Chinese.
48. I have a fantastic group of friends.
49. The last time I got angry at someone it was because he called my friends judgmental.
50. I yelled at him.
51. I never yell.
52. I can count on one hand the number of time I have yelled at someone.
53. I avoid conflict if at all possible.
54. I have a hard time saying no if someone asks me to do something. Even if it is inconvenient for me.
55. I am really easy to get along with.
56. Probably because I am a pansy and avoid conflict.
57. I really want people to like me.
58. I want to be described as nice.
59. I am not nice.
60. I screen phone calls.
61. I’m not good at returning phone calls.
62. I don’t like to do things that I am not good at.
63. I am learning to play pool.
64. I am not good at it.
65. I can’t spell.
66. Or type.
67. I wish that I were a good writer.
68. I can’t stand it when people use quotation marks inappropriately.
69. Air quotes are even worse.
70. I love Sunday afternoon naps.
71. especially in the summer when it’s hot outside and the sheets are cool
72. I am pretty independent.
73. My greatest fear is being alone the rest of my life.
74. I am dating an amazing man.
75. I have flat feet.
76. I had to wear corrective shoes as a child.
77. If I stand for too long, it makes my knees hurt.
78. I wear a digital watch.
79. It drives my mom crazy.
80. But not as much as the rubber band I wear on my other wrist.
81. I am a bit of a dork.
82. I like to think that you wouldn’t realize it by looking at me.
83. I suspect that I am wrong.
84. On a daily basis, I read the blogs of several people I don’t know.
85. I recently found out that my boyfriend knows one of the girls I blog stalk.
86. I am a little jealous that he knows her and I don’t.
87. And a little worried that if he starts reading her blog, he will like her more than me.
88. Did I mention that I am surprisingly insecure?
89. My favorite flowers are daffodils but they make my sinuses go crazy.
90. I hate running but I try to like it.
91. I took about 12 years of piano lessons but I know I can’t play a piece all the way through.
92. I also played the trumpet but wish I played the cello.
93. I like to have conversations when I am tired because my barriers are down and I will really say what is on my mind.
94. I am more of a morning person. I get much more done in the morning.
95. There are days in the summer when I don’t get out of my pajamas.
96. Or if I am at home home, out of my bathing suit.
97. I hate to do laundry.
98. I will wear clothes dirty.
99. The jeans I am wearing now are dirty.
100. I am going to start to blog more.
101. Like the summers when I was in Asia.
102. I probably will forget to blog by next week.
103. I am glad not to be in Asia this summer.