I have just gotten back from a wonderful but short visit with my mom. I don't get to see her nearly often enough. Her significant other is a wonderful little terrier named Scruffy, who we are all grateful has come into her live. She keeps mom company and has a delightful personality that you quickly fall in love with as you watch the interaction between these two friends. I not only spent time with my wonderful mother but my dear sister Melissa and her awesome husband Steve. We didn't do a whole lot, just sat and talked and went through pictures, recalling a lot of fun things about growing up together. We did have to go to the store so that I could be the first great Aunt to give my new great niece a gift. I have not had the privilege of being a great aunt on my side of the family so I was thrilled to think that Dustin and Sara had blessed me with the delightful prospect and couldn't wait to purchase a cute little outfit for their daughter, who will be born in May. We met them at Mamacieta's for lunch and it was fun watching my dear nephew be so thoughtful and attentive to his sweet Sara.

Okay, so Leanne has tagged us all to be honest about 10 things others might not know about us. So here I go:

1. I am terrified of doing anything by myself that I have not done before. I have to talk myself into it, retalk myself through it and the anxiety I go through sometimes causes me to procrastinate until I just have no choice. It's awful and I hate it and I work on it all the time. I don't know what I would do without Billy because he so many times without even knowing it paves the way for me so that I am not as afraid as I would be by myself.

2. There are times that I just need to stay in bed all day and watch stupid movies and television shows for the whole day, not doing anything, not accomplishing anything and I feel terribly guilty about it but I can't function without that time to vegetate. I am grateful for an understanding husband who doesn't ask any questions, he just lets me have the time I need to recover from the stresses of life. I don't do it often only about twice a year but for some reason it just helps me through the rest of the year.

3. I love the stupidest television shows ever. I love Project Runway, Top Chef, Shear Genius, and all sorts of silly shows like this. I hate for anybody to catch me watching them because they are a silly waste of time. But I am so grateful that I have a DVR so I can record them and watch them when I can't sleep at night or whenever possible.

4. I binge of Junior Mints or Milk Duds occasionally. I buy a big box and say I'm only going to eat a few, then I eat the whole box. I know I'm going to, but I always say I'm not, to justify buying the big box.

5. The older I get the harder it is to control certain bodily functions. I remember my grandmother telling me one time that it was better to bear the shame than bear the pain but whenever this happens to me in public areas ( I don't mind it happening in my own home) I discreetly walk away hoping that if anyone catches a whiff they will think it was someone else. Oh the shame, the shame!!!

6. I to have been impatient with those who are injured or ill. The older I get the more empathy I have because things keep happening to me that cause me to realize what others have gone through. Now everytime I find myself being impatient I think uh-oh, I better change my tune.

7. It has always made me angry when people couldn't hear me. Now I'm very worried that I am loosing my hearing and I will have to know that there are people putting up with my inability to hear them, oh the joys of getting old.

8. When I really love a book, I can't hardly stand to put it down and worry every moment I am not reading that something is going on that I need to know about. When I finish it I go through a form of mourning for these friends I have lost.

9. I have a secret delight in watching my daughters struggle with the same problems with their children that I struggled with raising them. When they call me complaining, I just smile and say, Yes, I know dear but aren't they delightful. Because my other confession is that's it's way easier to see the joy of the whole thing from this side than from the other.

10. My last true confession, I actually like revealing secrets about myself because it makes me feel safer, I don't have to hide anything, it's all out there and whatever the secret is, it can't be nearly as hard as trying to keep it from everyone. And in reality, there are really no secrets, because there is someone who knows them all and He loves us in spite of the secrets we think we keep.

So now I'm done and I send the challenge on to everyone who reads my blog also.