Em
TGIF!
Well friends, my weekends away from home are not over yet. In about seven hours I will once again be buckling my seatbelt (that’s for you Mom) and hitting the road to make the 5 ½ hours 343.39  miles drive to my hometown. This will also be the destination the following weekend. Why drive two weekends in a row you may ask. Why not? I can and so I will. I am actually going to surprise my sister on her birthday morning by showing up for coffee with the family. As of right now, I believe that she thinks I am a wicked sister because I told her I just couldn’t make it happen. Well, Surprise because I will be on my way to see you soon! I also get to carpool some of the way with one of my other sisters (confused yet with all this sister talk?), so that will make the drive not seem so long. In three weekends, I will have been in four different states and back again. As I mentioned before, what a month!
So today’s list might seem kind of random, but that’s okay. I hope you enjoy it all the same. Lately, there have been people asking me when Cory and I are going to have kids. I have never hid the fact that we do indeed plan on having kids, but the timing is unsure. There are a lot of things we probably have to do before we even start trying, but nonetheless, baby talk seems to be everywhere. In all of this baby talk, I wanted to see if there are legit reasons why some people should have kids. Read on and enjoy my Friends:
Reasons (Smart reasons) why People Should have Kids
·         You need the tax deductions
·         You always have leftovers and they always go bad
·         You’re not the odd one out at Disney World if you have kids and Disney vacations always seem to be for families of four anyways
·         You’re in enough debt already. What difference could a few kids make?
·         If you spray hair spray on dust bunnies and run over them with roller blades, they can ignite. With kids, this could be a fun activity and  can save you money on the heating bills
·         You can tell your place of employment that your kid is sick and they won’t question it. This is much better then you faking illness because you can have a day off and go back to work and there are no awkward questions of how you feel.
I was always taught to weigh the pros and cons of each situation. The above list seems to be very good reasons on why kids are a good thing, but there have to be some reasons why people should NOT have kids.
Reasons to NOT have Kids (also smart reasons)
·         A king size waterbed holds enough water to fill a 2,000 sq. foot house 4 inches deep
·         A 3-year-old's voice is louder than 200 adults in a crowded restaurant
·         When you hear the toilet flush and the words, "Uh-oh", it's already too late
·         Certain Lego's will pass through the digestive tract of a four-year-old, some however will not.
·         Super glue can be forever
·         Garbage bags do not make good parachutes
·         You probably do not want to know what that odor is
·         Always look in the oven before you turn it on. Plastic toys do not like ovens
·         If you hook a dog leash over a ceiling fan, the motor is not strong enough to rotate a 42 pound boy wearing Batman underwear and a Superman cape. It is strong enough, however, to spread paint on all four walls of a 20X20 foot room
·         The spin cycle on the washing machine does not make earth worms dizzy. It will, however, make cats dizzy, and cats throw up twice their body weight when dizzy
There you go friends, the pros and cons of having kids. I believe that if anyone does or does not want a kid, refer to the lists above. These reasons alone should be the main factor in your decision (God help us all).  
I hope everyone has a delightful weekend. Make the last weekend in March one to be reckoned with.  Play some games, hike up the party pants, put your dancing shoes on and have a grand time.
As a preparation for Easter, I am going to leave you with a cartoon that requires no thought but delivers good laughs. I was going to put the cartoon on here that my Pa sent me this morning, but I needed something appropriate. Somehow, I felt the other cartoon wasn't.
Happy March, friends. I will see you in the lovely month of April. May the showers of happiness start.

Em
Hello there and Happy Thursday.
I hope your day is going by as quickly as mine is and I hope some of you are delighting in weather that doesn’t require an umbrella.
Today I am going to write about things going right. I know we all have days where things go wrong, but every now and again we do get a streak where things go right. Like completely right. In a way that you yourself don’t even believe (pinch me). I hope this has happened for you some time or another. As you all know, I am very happy and am blessed with such a life that I am grateful every day for the life I get to live. Lately though, it seems that there have been four-leaf clovers on my dancing shoes and my soap is laced with luck (or maybe Harry Potter gave me his liquid luck. Sorry, nerd moment). Things have been going better than ever. Everything seems to be aligning in my favor and I am holding my breath because I don’t want this to end. It is a ‘Too good to be true’ situation only situation should be situations because the last month has been remarkable. Hopefully I can share what has been going on soon, but before I do, I would just like to thank the Subaru who parked by me today. You made my day that is one filled with laughter and smiles. You obviously have caught on to my spirit (pun intended. Read on.) and you would like to celebrate my good fortune with five cases of MGD (that’s Miller Genuine draft for all of you non-beer people out there). A couple things: 1. Because you were parked by me, you had to have been a staff member here at the college (which makes this situation Hilarious) and I think that we should meet. Pronto. 2. You are lucky that it is so cold out today that your Subaru acts like a refrigerator because that (not so) delicious beer would go bad and we would have nothing to celebrate with. 3. Lastly, I am going believe that is in fact for me because my life has been so prodigious lately that I wouldn’t be surprised if it is in my car at the end of the day. I am thanking you in advance (I left my passenger door open just in case this does happen).
Karma. One little word that so many believe in or not believe in. I, for one, am a firm believer in karma and like to think that I am getting my rewards this month. Be nice, smile, and make every day a great one because karma will smile back when it is least expected. That, my friends, is the lesson of the day.
Until tomorrow, I am wishing you all the best. Let’s go have a cold one together soon.
-Cheers
Em
Hello Middle of the Week. We meet again my friend. 
Well, friends. I hope your Monday was filled with fun, your Tuesday with smiles, and your Wednesday with hope (here’s to hoping the rest of the week goes by fast).
Not that all (or any) of you care, but I feel like today is a good day to recap how my training has been going for the half-marathon in June . Maybe if I talk about how lazy I have been (please don’t read this Abby) it will motivate me to do that 5 mile run this weekend (longest so far).
I will give you a quick rundown. This week is my third week of training. My fastest mile is 10.36 minutes (the wind was at my back s it wasn't all me). My longest run has been 4.13 miles that took me approximately 57 minutes to complete. Is this good? I have no idea. I am feeling that it isn’t. So, this is obviously my first half marathon and probably the last because I still believe that I will somehow collapse or ride in the van of discomfiture because I couldn’t keep a 16 minuet per mile pace and will probably hide the rest of my life from embarrassment. This aside, I feel like my training has been going mediocre. Frankly, I am supposed workout six days a week, run an average of 3 miles per day, but my weekends are busier than ever, which is hard. I have good intentions (I even bring workout clothes everywhere I go) but I just don’t seem to work out when I am somewhere else besides home. I don’t know how to fix this either because I am going to be gone the next two weekends again. I keep reminding myself that this is only the third week, but the image of me getting picked up in the van of doom makes me nervous that I am not training hard enough. My training partner/motivator  (who is slacking lately. Ahem. You should know that I come first before everything. Even California. Just kidding…maybe) is helping me, but I just don’t think I am good enough.
Does this get me down? Haha. Who do you think I am. Of course it doesn’t. It just makes me more determined to stick with this intense training schedule and try to squeeze in as many miles as I can when I am at home. I also have been averaging 13.8 miles a week, which I don’t think is so bad for not running on the weekends. I am also hearing of more and more people I know who are running it. This ranges from old high school friends to coworkers. Am I about to let them see my name in the Van Pick-Up column of the newspaper the next day? Nope! So far though, I have realized that I don’t like to run in strong wind, snow, rain, cold, or heat. Marathon day is going to be perfect weather, right? This is what I am going to tell myself at least. A girl can dream! J
Along with all of this, I believe there is a mention in the Half-Marathon Runners guide it states that style comes first (Okay, I made that up but I am sticking to it) so I am going to treat myself to a whole new outfit for the day of. I will probably run faster if I look good. Now, should I get my hair done the day before or not………
Now that you all have read some pointless facts about my running (and wasted 3-5 minutes of your life), we should all get back to work and enjoy this day. I do feel more motivated, so mission accomplished. I hope you all can do something to get a dose of motivation and do something you have been meaning to do. Considered you pushed. From me to you: Get out and do something great!
-Cheers
Em
Monday, Monday. Why do you always come so soon?

My weekend seemed to fly by, but they always do. This weekend, in particular, was packed with so much excitement that I truly didn’t want it to end. What went on, you may (or may not J) ask? Well, this weekend I did a lot of firsts. A lot of them. I will give you a quick (or not so quick) rundown.
1.       I took a nice stroll downtown Stillwater, Minnesota. Yes, I did grow up in Minnesota and have been very close by, but this Minnesota native has never been to Stillwater. It was wonderful and it was a good thing I didn’t have much money to spend because the whole inventory of Stella’s boutique would have been mine.
2.       I went to Hudson, Wisconsin for the first time and danced the night away.
3.       My very good friend took me to see The Hunger Games, at the UltraScreen.  If you all are like me, you have no idea what this means. Well, let me just say that the screen is Huge. Like Huge!!! To a person who has never seen one, I would guess it is four times (okay, so not that big) the size of a regular movie screen. Not only did I see the movie I have been waiting for what seems like a long time (I almost peed a little while I was in this amazing theater waiting for the movie to start; this is how excited I was. Sorry for the visual. I just wanted to let you all know how epic this was for me), I also saw it with the other biggest fan of the Hunger Games and her awesome sidekick. Again, this was pretty epic.
4.       I went to the Rainforest Café in the Mall of America. Now, every time I go there, I walk by the ambitious sounds of the Jungle as they try to lure me in. Well, we fell for the bait and went on a Safari (Thank you rainforest Café for calling my dining experience a safari).
5.       I went shopping at Charming Charlie’s! I have never heard of this store before, but that has changed (Thank You JLN for being the sole cause of my addiction. Dear checkbook, when you are full again, we are going on a road trip). This is, hands down, the best store I have even been to. EVER.
6.       I wrote my first book review. (Thank you so much, Tribute Books, for the opportunity) I love writing about the wonder of words and characters that can take you into another world. It felt good to do this again. Also, the author e-mailed me some very nice words. What an Amazing Person! This is what started the weekend off to such an exhilarating start.
7.       Two Words: Bacon Spatzel.  
8.       I met one of the biggest stars ever to be on T.V,! He didn’t talk back to me, was not real, and I pushed some kids out of the way to meet him, but we had a great time together. Oh  SpongeBob, you make my weekends start off GrrrrrR-E-A-T (as well as Tony the Tiger, I guess)! 

So much Awesomeness packed into one weekend. I can’t wait to see what Next weekend brings.
Special Thanks are on Order:
Thank you Amy Lignor, for e-mailing me one of the sweetest e-mails I have recieved in a long time. Much Appreciated.
Thank you JLN, for showing me such a great time. Honestly. We had the epitome of a girl’s weekend.
Thank you Cody and Alyssa, for feeding the starving people on 17th Ave East. We are still talking about the Bacon Spatzel (I took some and hid it from Cory. I don’t think I can trust him alone). The food, wine and splendid company was just thing the thing to close out the weekend on a great note!
Thank you Cory, for letting me do all of these amazing things. Hopefully we can go on an adventure together. (P.S.: Thanks for not checking my shopping bags when I come home. I may have lied to you how much I bought).
Finally, Thank you friends, for always being amazing! Until tomorrow!
-Cheers
Em
Hello Friends. As mentioned yesterday, I am going to put my list on hold this week and treat to you to my first Book review here on Morning Start with Em. I would like to thank Tribute books for giving me the opportunity to do this and hope you all enjoy my review as much as I like reading it.


Until Next Time: The Angel Chronicles Book One by Amy Lignor
Overview
How does a girl choose between the one who steals her heart and the one who owns her soul?
Matt and Emily were created for a specific job. Raised and trained as the ultimate angel/warrior team, they are sent down to save, defend, judge and forgive, depending on the 'life' they've been assigned. What they don't realize is that the power of human emotions, such as love, anger, passion and fear can take over even the best of souls, causing them to make mistakes and follow paths that lead to confusion and heartache.
When the reason for their training is finally revealed, the angel/warrior team find themselves thrust into a world they know nothing about. Matt takes over the life of Daniel, a young man with a great deal of baggage. Emily becomes Liz, a girl living in a remote village who relies on nothing more than her own strength to survive. A violent storm erupts one night, and framed in the window of Liz's establishment is a frightening face. Let in by the soul of a Good Samaritan, the two visitors bring with them a past full of secrets that could literally change an angel's path and a warrior's plans.
From murder to redemption, this angel/warrior team must find a way to keep the faith they have in each other in a world that's ripping them apart.
Not all Angels have Wings- A book review by Em
Until Next Time by Amy Lignor wrote a refreshing new twist in the Angel novel world.  This novel is unlike any Angel novel I have read.  There are so many complex relationships, that it seemed just a bit scattered. A puzzle that was just beginning. The third person narration was a little off-putting at first, but, like poetry, once you get used to the linguistics there is no stopping the flow of the language.
The most unexpected dynamics of this novel were the lessons that the characters learned. They journey through a world of love, esteem, intelligence, fear, hurt, death, and finding the true meaning of strength. It was much more of an emotional novel than I thought it would be when I first met Matt and Emily, warrior and angel. The love triangle that happens searches unknown corners for the true meaning of love. Who really is our soul mate? What decision is the right choice? Will we ever regret the choices we make? These are all questions that people ask themselves each day and it is no different in this novel. The fact that Amy takes us through the answers to these questions through the characters shows me just how deep each character is.  
Emily is a strong minded, intelligent angel with love surrounding her. Matt is a warrior though and though, always questioning but always protecting.  Their journey from heaven to earth was hard to follow at first, but again, once you found the flow of things, the language was both romantic and exciting. Each world was always demarcated with something else to add in so we get to explore heaven and earth with the characters. It was a dance of worlds and that is what intrigued me. The emotion draws the reader in. The part that really got to me was when Emily questions what happens when an angel loses her faith. This is such a beautiful yet heartbreaking question that you should want to read it from that one line.
Getting right down to it, I love the characters in this novel. Matt and Emily are two very memorable characters. The connection that they have is one that most people strive to find. Angel and Warrior. Two characters so in love and meant to be together that you almost envy them.  The scenes that Amy writes of Matt and Emily were incredibly beautiful and could easily take someone’s breath away. The deepness of this novel is cleverly broken up by the light sparring of the Saints and the earthly friend, Faith.
Overall, I would recommend this novel to anyone who loves beautiful words wrote into a story of love, angels, warriors, and saving the world. If things start to get confusing, do yourself a favor and keep reading.  In the end, the puzzle pieces will all be put in place and you definitely won’t regret seeing the puzzle take shape. As Amy wrote, “Some things are better left unknown.” (pg. 75) I believe The Angel Chronicles is going to be an epic series that might become the next phenomenon.
“Miracles don’t have to be an act of God. Most of the time miracles are simply a godly act.” (page 39)
Check out Amy’s website! Also, see what other people are saying about Until Next Time! For other blog book tours, check out TributeBooks.
Until Next Time, my friends! In the meantime, read below for some information on the fantastic author, Amy Lignor!
About the Author
Amy Lignor began her career at Grey House Publishing in northwest Connecticut where she was the Editor-in-Chief of numerous educational and business directories.
Now she is a published author of several works of fiction. The Billy the Kid historical The Heart of a Legend; the thriller, Mind Made; and the adventure novel, Tallent & Lowery 13.
She is also the owner of The Write Companion, a company that offers help and support to writers through a full range of editorial services from proofreading and copyediting to ghostwriting and research. As the daughter of a research librarian, she is also an active book reviewer.
Currently, she lives with her daughter, mother and a rambunctious German Shepherd named Reuben, in the beautiful state of New Mexico.
-Cheers 
Em
Hello Friends.
Long, long time no talk. I do apologize for my absence. I have been having adventures left and right and back again. My life has been so exciting these last couple of days that I honestly don’t know where to begin. Let’s see. In a nutshell, I have been driving, riding, going places I have never seen, seeing friends that make me smile, taking some of the best pictures in my amateur photography life, running distances I didn’t think I could, reconnecting with my own happiness, and making life changing decisions.
Yes, this is all you guys are going to get right now. I do apologize for the ambiguity of my nutshell (that sounds dirty, but is clearly not J). I do hope I will be able to embellish on this soon, but for the time being we will all have to live in suspense.
In the meantime, I will update you on some random things.
1.       I would first like to thank Danielle for sending me one cool coffee mug.  The color choices and the fact that it is larger than most mugs makes it the perfect mug for me. I can’t thank her enough. Also, if you’re looking for some really awesome jewelry, check hers out: Wired Essentials here.
2.       I would also like to give a shout out to my lovely friend Sara. The shout out is for always having fun, making me laugh, for always making my workday interesting, and for showing me what a bargain really is. For a relationship that started out with me wondering who this girl was that is taking my job, I think she is pretty rad. Okay, more like awesome. Thanks friend.
3.       My marathon training is the second week in. So far I have been keeping up with it (kind of) and feel great (when I am not lying on the ground panting because I saw death in the form of my running shoes and sidewalk). My longest run has been 4 miles and it was, well, a success in the sense I finished it. I didn’t get a very good time, but I did do the full four miles. I am feeling that when June comes around, I will be ready. Hopefully.
4.       Happy spring people! It was the first day of Spring yesterday and it already feels like summer. Mother Nature isn’t the only one confused by the summer like conditions, but I will take it. I have been waking up to the songs of birds and the smell of summer. Ahhh, how sweet life is.
5.       My first book review should be in full swing tomorrow. I will have to move my Friday list back to a later date, but I am excited to review my first book for Tribute Books. If you would like a sneak peek at the book I am reviewing, check it out: Until Next Time: The Angel Chronicles by Amy Lignor.  
6.       Life for me right now is Grand. Just magnificent! I am excited and happy and can’t wait to see what tomorrow brings.
7. It feels so good to be writing to you all once again!
Enjoy Spring, Friends. I will catch up with you soon.
-Cheers J
Em
Happy Wednesday!
The weather outside is breaking records all over because of the warmth and sunshine mother earth is giving us. I don’t hear anyone complaining and the spirits are high. Spring is coming early this year and excitement is in the air. Sometimes life is just good because, well, it’s just good. O happy day!
Today I am going to do something a little different. My Friend Sara tagged me in this a couple days ago and I feel the time is right to complete this.

The Twenty-Two Things (or more) You Probably don’t Care About 
but I am Going to List them Anyways List:

The Rules:
1. Post these rules.
2. Post a photo of yourself and 11 random things.
3. Answer the questions set for you in the original post.
4. Create 11 new questions and tag people to answer them.
5. Go to their blog/twitter and tell them that you've tagged them.
This is me (on the left) with my very good friend. I thought she deserved a cameo appearance!
Here are the Random Facts about me:
1.  If I wasn’t married, I would see myself owning 25 cats and being totally okay with it. Yes, I would be the Crazy Cat Lady. I would still love my life. Seriously.
2. I play video games almost (Almost) every night. Sometimes for multiple hours.
3. I still count on my fingers.
4. My best friends are my sisters, husband, and parents. They are also my role models in many ways. Yup, I am a pretty lucky gal!
5.When I have a piece of gum, I chew it for 20 seconds and then spit it out. Every time. (Word to the wise, don’t offer me gum because it will be a waste).
6.I used to go to exotic pet sales when I was younger. My parents always gave me $20.00 hoping I would come back with nothing. I always came home with an animal. They have ranged from hedgehogs to lovebirds.
7. I was the best shot in my Gun Safety classes (Thanks Pa!).
8.  I have named every single vehicle I have ever had. The first vehicle I ever drove was Old Greeny. It was a very old truck whose clutch stuck. I used to drive in the ditches in Old Greeny to go and pick my dad up in the field because I wasn’t old enough to actually drive. No rules state that a twelve year old can’t drive in ditches (Right Pa?).J

9.I have to be early to everything. Literally. I would rather sit in my car for an hour like a loser and be that early than show up 5 minutes to the start of something. Five minutes early is late to me. (This drives Cory crazy)
10. I am an adrenaline junkie. I love anything that goes fast and gets me that feeling of being on the verge of just a bit scared. (This is the result of my lead foot. It is also the result of me holding the Record one summer of riding the Wild Thing at Valleyfair the most times consecutively.  Forty-two times to be exact, but I am sure this has been broken by now because that was back in High School).
11. I prefer to watch movies on T.V. Even if I own the movie, I will still opt to watch it with commercial breaks. Why? I have no idea.

 Sara’s Questions for me:
1. Have you ever tried to write with your toes?
* When I was first tagged, the answer would have been no. The status has since then changed. Two words: Epic Fail.
2. What is your worst and least endearing habit?
* My worst habit you ask? Cory will probably say those are aplenty .J  I think I am going to stick with ice chewing. For some reason, I love to eat ice. I know, I know, this is super bad for my teeth. My mom sometimes resorts to calling me a horse because that’s what I sound like when I chew the delicious pieces of frozen water but I can’t help it. If there is an ice cube in a glass, you best bet on me eating it.
3. If you had the opportunity to go back and change one thing in your past, what is it and why?
* I am a firm believer in fate. I think that if I went back and changed on thing in my past, I wouldn’t be where I am today. I love my life, and I wouldn’t change it. I have has some bad times, but learned lessons from them. I have had some great times and have cherished those moments. I guess if I had to choose something, I would go back to the day I started eating ice and, well, not started to eat it. Bad habit solved.
4. What was your first car?
* My very first car was a 1995 Pontiac Grand Am. White in color and very sexy to me at the time. I remember that it cost $3,200. My parents helped me buy it (and by helped I mean they pretty much bought it. I think I contributed somewhere between $500 - $1,000). RIP White Lightening.
5. What is your favorite album and why?
* Okay, this might be embarrassing.  First of all, Music isn’t my favorite thing. Don’t get me wrong, I do listen to it at work; I enjoy it while I am running and I like it as background sound, but I never really had the need to buy a tape or CD (this is also the result of me never going to a concert before). I believe the first album I ever bought was Spice Girls and I believe that might have been the last (just kidding…Kind of).  I would prefer to listen to Public Radio while in the car over music, but again, I can appreciate music and I can very much enjoy it. If I would have to pick a favorite album (this is where the embarrassment comes in), I would be a tie between Eminem: The Eminem Show and Disney’s Greatest Hits. Okay, I know that these are two opposite ends of the spectrum, but it’s the truth. I have a weird obsession with Eminem and know almost every single one of his songs. Why? Maybe it brings out the inner hip hop wannabe in me, but I love his music nonetheless. As far as the Disney goes; I love Disney music, I know all the words, it makes me feel happy and young and these are some of the few songs that I can belt out in the car and not care who hears me (By the way, I am a horrible singer. Like, I am not even remotely good); but I love me some Disney music.
6. What is your favorite book and why?
*If you thought my answer to the music questions was long, just you wait. I am an avid reader in many genres, so I think it would only be fair to do a breakdown of each genre, what my favorite book is in each and my reasons why. However, I am not going to make you sit though that because it would take me days to do this. I have so many favorite books for so many different reasons so I would be cheating on my books if I mentioned just one. Instead, I will mention one of my favorite books that really got an emotional response from me (there are a lot of books that have done this, but when I say emotional, I mean the tears from both happiness and sadness were streaming down) and that would be Waiting for White Horses by Nathan Jorgenson. The reasons I chose this one for my post is because 1. You all should probably just read it because it is just that great! 2. Nathan Jorgenson’s words are poetic in such a beautiful way that it is hard not to love. 3. My dad and I are super close, and all throughout this book, I couldn’t help thinking that some of the things reminded me of him. 4. The author pretty much rocks! (I e-mailed him asking for an autographed book for my Dad for Christmas. Not really expecting a response, he emailed me the same day, wrote me a nice message, and sent me a book).  While you are at it, you should probably just read The Mulligan and his newest book A Crooked Number (which I have yet to purchase and read, but am very excited).  In short (or not so short) in the words of the author himself; “If we are lucky, we all learn to wait for white horses... it's how we come to understand, through laughter and tears, the real value of the love of our lives.” That is why, my friends, it is one of my favorite books. 
7. If you could vacation anywhere in the continental United States- where would you go?
* I am going to cheat here and go with a couple states. If I had the money, a reliable car, and the time off; my dream vacation would be to go on a road trip and drive though the states on the East Coast in the Fall. I would start with some Maine lobster and take the drive down though Maryland. A gal can dream, right?
8. If you could buy a farm animal- which one would you chose?
* So, I think this question is wasted on me because I grew up on a farm, so I pretty much have had every animal a farm could have at one point in my life (and yes, Sara, I have had many goats. Sorry to rub it in). Since I now live in town, I guess the animals I miss the most are horses and chickens. Out of the two, I would have to say I wish I had some chickens. J
9. What is your biggest fear?
* Not to get to mawkish here, but my biggest fear is losing my parents. I am so close to them and don’t even want to think about them not in my life. (I am also scared or dropping dead while running Grandma’s Half-Marathon. Who would choose to run 13.1 miles? Crazy people, that’s who. I will tape my insurance card on my running bib just in case).
10. What is your least favorite childhood memory?
* It is weird what sticks on your mind from childhood. My least favorite memory from childhood is when I was going down the slide at the City Pool and gripped onto the sides of the slide so hard that I fell off while going down. Onto the pavement. Don’t worry, it wasn’t a very tall slide and I was about half way down, but I remember falling off. Also, I remember that the reason I was going down the slide was to show off how much of a big girl I was to my godmother by going down the slide by myself. Double Embarrassment.
11. What is one thing you would like to learn how to do in your lifetime?
* Jump Horses. Weird and random? Why yes it is, but I have always wanted to learn how to do this. I have a love of horses and sometimes wish I would have become an equestrian who did this for a living. 
So, by looking at other people’s answers to these, I feel like I wrote way too much. I hope you enjoy my lengthy answers. Just be happy that it was only eleven questions.
So here are my questions for the following people: Danielle, P!,  MissFelicity, and Kate!
1.       What is the biggest event, by number of people, that you have seen in person?
2.       If you could trade places with any other person for a week, famous or not famous, living or dead, real or fictional. with whom would it be and why?
3.       What kind of people do you dislike?
4.       If you had only six months left to live, what would you do with the time?
5.       If you could be a superhero, what would you want your superpowers to be?
6.       What is one of your guilty pleasures?
7.       What is the best advice that you have been given?
8.       If someone wrote a biography about you, what do you think the title should be?
9.       If you could change your name, what would you change it to?
10.   Who was your best friend in elementary or high school? Are you still friends with them?
11.   What is, hands down, one of the best things that have ever happened to you?
Cheers!

Em
It’s Friday, Friday, Friday!!
Hey Friends! I hope you all are gearing up for the weekend. This weekend I have no idea what’s going on in terms of my life. Cory and I have plenty of invites, but we just aren’t sure which one’s we are going to attend. There will be a waterfall effect depends on which invite we go to.  Are we going to Fargo, ND (if we do this, all the other plans are a no-go)? Are we going to attend out friend’s fantastic Pre-St. patty’s Day party(Green Beer anyone!)? Are we going to see a show ( What a shrew!  No not you, the Show is Taming of the Shrew by my friend William Shakespeare)? Or maybe just sit home and chase the cat around(Talk about fun)? Who knows? J The one thing I do know is that today is Friday (Holla!) and that means it is another fantastic day for a list. Now, I have a special treat coming up for you all soon, but today, I am going to keep it real with real definitions (as real as the Easter Bunny). Enjoy!
Say What Now?
·         Arbitrator \ar'-bi-tray-ter\:   A cook that leaves Arby's to work at McDonald's.
·         Avoidable \uh-voy'-duh-buhl\:  What a bullfighter tries to do.
·         Baloney \buh-lo'-nee\: Where some hemlines fall.
·         Bernadette \burn'-a-det\:  The act of torching a mortgage.
·         Burglarize \bur'-gler-ize\: What a crook sees with.
·         Control \kon-trol'\:  A short, ugly inmate.
·         Counterfeiters \kown-ter-fit-ers \: Workers who put together kitchen cabinets.
·         Eclipse \i-klips'\: What an English barber does for a living.
·         Eyedropper \i'-drop-ur\: A clumsy ophthalmologist.
·         Heroes \hee'-rhos\:  What a guy in a boat does.
·         Left Bank \left' bangk'\:  What the robber did when his bag was full of loot.
·         Misty \mis'-tee\:  How golfers create divots.
·         Paradox \par'-u-doks\: Two physicians.
·         Parasites \par'-uh-sites\:  What you see from the top of the Eiffel Tower.
·         Pharmacist \farm'-uh-sist\:  A helper on the farm.
·         Polarize \po'-lur-ize\:  What penguins see with.
·         Primate \pri'-mat\:  Removing your spouse from in front of the TV.
·         Relief \ree-leef'\:  What trees do in the spring.
·         Rubberneck \rub'-er-nek\:  What you do to relax your wife.
·         Seamstress \seem'-stres\:  Describes 250 pounds in a size six.
·         Selfish \sel'-fish\: What the owner of a seafood store does.
·         Subdued \sub-dood'\: Like, a guy, like, works on one of those, like, submarines, man.
·         Sudafed \sood'-a-fed\:  Bringing litigation against a government official.

There you go! Have a fantastically funny and full of fun Friday, Friends.

Cheers!

Em
Hello Thursday! It seems like just yesterday I was saying hello to you but here you are again, and what a great Thursday you have been so far.
First off, I don’t want you guys to get too used to the daily posts. I am as surprised as you probably are that I was able to post each and every day this week so far. I do feel like I am on top of things lately, but if I miss a day, I don’t want you to be angry. This is just an FYI for our own good.
What I am going to write about today is the unexpected. I am not talking about something crazy and off the wall, but as in legit unexpected. (i.e.: Expecting the unexpected). Okay, so now I am just confusing myself.  I just want you all to know that one of my favorite things that happen is when something unexpected happens for the better. Even though I have talked about disliking surprises, I secretly do love them because they are unexpected (In a good way). I don’t want you to get confused. If a tire fell off my car mid-driving (this kind of did happen), that is unexpected, but not in a good way. Having Cory come see me at work and stick around to visit: unexpected but in a good way.  Walking into a screen door because you thought it was open: unexpected and embarrassing (this also happened…when I was sober..and it was the middle of the day). People giving me snacks all day just because: unexpected but oh so delicious! Slipping on the only ice patch in a 3 mile radius: hurtful and unexpected. Forgetting that you hid girl scout cookies in your desk drawer and then finding them: pleasantly unexpected (Hmmm… it seems like most of my happiness stems from food). Okay, okay, you get the point. The fact of the matter is that it’s not always good to expect the unexpected because it can take the joy out of the small things in life.
So don’t plan every single thing out, because things happen and they can be great. Fly, friends.
Fly by the seat of your pants. Great things are bound to happen.
And it will be fun!
Be grateful for the Unexpected, the kind of unexpected that ends in smiles.
Happy Thursday everyone!
Em
It is Wednesday already Friends.  It really does seem crazy how time flies by. Today has been a delightful day because three things occurred today that just makes me smile.
  
First, I would like to announce that today (March 7th) marks the day of my one-year anniversary at my place of employment. For those of you who have been reading me or know me, you also know that I love where I work and thank the good man upstairs every day for helping me land this job(along with everyone else who holds a factor in helping me out. You know who you are!).  I will never take my job for granted and have yet to have a really bad day here. My life is so much better because I wake up and love to go to work (this is no lie!). I don’t mean to rub it in (maybe…) but I am so blessed it is hard not to smile. Happy Anniversary to me! I can’t wait for the next year…and the next…. And the next (okay, you get the idea).
The second reason that toady is awesome had to deal with that husband of mine. Today, he told me that I look pretty. Now, I already knew this (just kidding…sort of), but it was nice to hear. J This may be one of the small things in life, but I am so happy this is my life (Plus, if I tell everyone how sweet he was today, maybe he will take me out to eat tonight….. just maybe).
And the third reason that today is splendid has to deal with a piece of jewelry, my ring more specifically. This isn’t just any ring though; it is an owl ring that is named Harold. Harold the owl is just a touch too big for me, but he was so cute I had to get it anyways. Now, the story behind him is that I bought him and lost him in the same week (bummer), never mind the fact that I still believe that inanimate objects can have feelings (I will never outgrow this, mind you. My childhood was filled with stuffed animals and bikes and sleds, all which had names because they were obviously real…right?) Okay, so I am sometimes a four-year old at heart, we have already established that, but getting back to the story; the other day I found Harold and have been wearing him ever since. This alone made me happy, but what really put the smile on my face was when I took him off and sat him on my desk. He was just chillin’ there, looking at me, hanging out on my desk with his big eyes. Yes, this simple fact made me smirk. For all of you out there who don’t understand the fact of simple joys like this, you probably think my weird factor has gone up, but that is okay. I am still loving my life and I love the small things that make it so.
Enjoy the small things today friends because today is full of boundless fun!
Em
Top of the Tuesday to you, Friends.
Today, I feel like talking about something in my life that makes such a huge difference daily and thought I should share it with you. The word of the day is happiness. Day in and day out you see certain people who just seem a little bit happier (guilty). I think that sometimes people ask themselves if this is by design, chance, or accident. Some of the happiest people I know have made a conscious choice to be happy, and work toward it like any other goal that they choose to set for themselves. Lesson of the day from yours truly: If you really wish to be happy, it’s important to know just what it is that makes you that way so that you can incorporate more of the same into your daily life.
hap·py   /ˈhæpi/ Show Spelled[hap-ee]
adjective, -pi·er, -pi·est. 
1. delighted, pleased, or glad, as over a particular thing: to be happy to see a person.
2. characterized by or indicative of pleasure, contentment, or joy: a happy mood; a happy frame of mind.
3. favored by fortune; fortunate or lucky: a happy, fruitful land.
4. apt or felicitous, as actions, utterances, or ideas.
5. obsessed by or quick to use the item indicated (usually used in combination): a trigger-happy gangster. Everybody is gadget-happy these days.
I mentioned that I seek out happy things. I make a point every day to do or simply be near something that makes me happy. So, what makes me happy?
* Making my parents laugh * The feeling after a long run * Making pasta and eating as much of it as I can * My quirky and fun Husband * Sunday Mornings (well, mornings in general are pretty awesome) * Coffee Mugs (Yes, I have a weird obsession with coffee cups. If it wasn’t for Cory, all of our cupboards would be full with them)
I’m starting to beam just writing these down. And there’s a lot more. Don’t get me started on cats, t-shirts, lighting things on fire (I hope this doesn’t make me sound creepy), and a good book on a stormy night.
Long story short, be happy people! Life is so magical and crazy that it’s hard not to see the beauty in life, love, and happiness.  I’m always happy with whomever I’m with because I learn to see the beauty in every person. I’m always happy with where I am, because there’s no place on Earth that’s not a miracle. I love life because of everything and everyone around me. So go forth and be happy! Trust me, it sure is fun!

Em
Happy Monday! I hope all of you had a warm and happy weekend.
My weekend went by in a blur but it was a fantastic blur. I donned a mustache (or two), put on the brightest clothes I could find, met up with some funny dressed people (but how great they are), and ran a race…in a snowstorm. Okay, so I don’t think you can call it a storm, but we did have to shovel ourselves out of the house before the race, so I believe I can get away with saying it snowed.. a lot. Needless to say, the first annual Mustache March Run was a success in my book. It was just a great time with even grander people. I also have never ran in the snow before and feel quite successful that I finished the race without slipping and without snotcicles (Yes, I did just say that). Through all of this, I also have found a new respect for mustaches. Okay, so mine was fake (I will allow only a couple jokes containing my real mustache, ahem), but I must say my face would have been a lot (how do I say this?) snottier (?) if I didn’t have a mustache on. It really is a catch all for the boogers that didn't want to freeze. I do apologize for the image I have posted on your mind, but my upper lip stayed warm and dry and my mouth stayed snot-free. Thank you mustache.
Despite the snow and the cold, it really was a beautiful and great day for a run with friends. I can’t wait for next year. I also feel that much more determined to keep running so I am prepared for the half-marathon. It was a great race to start off my own running season.  

It is snowing once again today, and I feel like running outside. I might as well call my fake fuzzy friend the Mustache Mmotivator! (hmmm, if only I didn’t lose it).

This is the beautiful city where I live and this is also the day of the race (Please make a note of the white caps in Lake Superior...Brr.) But all in all Pretty Cool, huh?



There we all are. All 400 of us huddled together. Nice day for a run?
 Our night ended with some beer and spaghetti and a hot shower for this gal. What a grand day! I hope you all have recovered from the weekend and are enjoying this Monday to the fullest because it is going to be a great week everyone! Let’s all enjoy.

-Cheers!