"Guess What That Make Me Think Of?"

My family has heard it over and over from me lately.
The same question, asked with an expectant grin:

Bluegrass music in the CD player -"Guess what that makes me think of?"
Discussion about chicken salad - "Guess what that makes me think of?!"
"Pretty Woman" playing in the store - "Guess what that makes me think of?"
Quiz results declaring my similarity to Superman - "Guess what that makes me think of?"

There have been many others, too. I just can't remember them.
And my knowing family has certainly learned the answer well.
Six Flags.

When I'm shopping, I find myself setting the standard by asking, "would this be good to wear at six flags?"
I'm trying to think of a good hat design to crochet for summer wear at six flags.
Listening to my new tunes , some of them strike me as perfect for listening to with the windows rolled down on the way to six flags.
When I'm walking, I like to think that I'm getting in shape for a summer of fun at six flags.

This is what anticipating the joys of a season pass does to me, people. Scary, I know.
And it's not like I've never been.
I mean, I have different "riding techniques" for the different coasters. One summer we went so often we became familiar with certain ride operators and tram drivers.

I love it. What can I say?

And guess what?
WE'RE GOING THIS SATURDAY!
eep!! I am so excited.
I tell you, when I get there, I hop around and clap my hands like a first grader every time. Ask my friends.

Anyways, my family has season passes, so if you ever want some company on your trip to Six Flags this summer, call me! ... Unless you had somebody better in mind. lol

Still no pictures. Maybe I'll do an etsy update soon and include photos for that. :D

What do you think about Six Flags? Let's get some feedback around here!

Life Lesson Monday

Most books would be pathetically short if people just said what they were trying to say.

It's a good thing for us readers that so many of our favorite characters can't just come right out with what they mean the first time. Imagine how little of a book would be left if you cut out all the hemming and hawing, waiting, worrying, secret meanings and sub plots. Case in point:

~Pride and Prejudice~

(The Extremely Condensed Caitlin Paraphrase)

Bennet Sisters: Hey look! Two rich guys! We have to marry them!

Bingley: Jane, please marry me.

Jane: okay!

Darcy: I don't like you. Your family's creepy, and you're not so hot yourself.

Lizzy: Well, I don't like you either, cuz you're prejudiced against people who aren't rich. Snob.

Darcy: You're spunky and captivating. Whaddya know! I do like you!! As a matter of fact, I think I - no! I LOVE YOU!

Lizzy: You stupid jerk!

Darcy: I really am a nice guy. **tosses money around** See? Plus, I guess you do have nice eyes.

Lizzy: Oh, good. I'm sorry we were both insensitive idiots. You're rich and handsome, and I like you.

Darcy: So, can we get married?

Lizzy: Absolutely.

HAPPILY EVER AFTER

(switching it up with the life lessons. Believe it or not, I seem to have run out of my blonde stories. lol ... and apologies to any of you who may recognize this post... it has been modified from it's original format posted in 2007. )

Life Lesson Monday

I've only written seven life lesson posts since I started doing them.
What a slacker!

Today's lesson is

Don't Eat Half a Bag of Chocolate Covered Espresso Beans Before Bed

I did that .... I guess two years ago?
I was packing for camp, and feeling a little depressed. I don't know why. Probably because it was around midnight. And I wasn't very excited. I was happy about going to camp, but I wasn't bursting with excitement. Which was disappointing. I felt like I was missing out on a lot of fun by not being uber excited. And I didn't want to pack. So I sat in the corner of the room with a five dollar bag of chocolate covered espresso beans and watched Laura pack instead.

We chatted, and I munched away on the bittersweet crunchy treats.
Stupid.

From what I recall, I ended up feeling rather sick to my stomach, and emotionally distressed, being hyper and dead tired simultaneously.

I also had a rather hard time falling asleep once I'd finished packing.

:)

And I apologize again for the lack of pictures on this blog of late. I shall try to do better!
And for the lack of humor in this post. I seem to be at a loss for all the blonde Caitlinesque things I've done in the past. I know there are plenty there, they're just not coming to me!

Valentine's Day!

Happy Valentine's Day!
It has been a regular old uneventful Saturday here, but I thought I should at least write a special blog post for the occasion. And not only did I think it, but I remembered to do it!

I must say, I haven't had much cause to wish for a valentine of my own this February.

I shall tell you why.

These 8 oh-so-deceptively cute boys all brought me chocolate.
YAY!
And I was practically killed with hugs and kisses out on the playground Thursday.
It had been a tough morning. I needed it.
I've been recovering by eating fudge ever since.

And that is why Miss Caitlin wasn't in Dreadful Need of a boyfriend for Valentine's Day.

All this is not to say that I don't need any guys in my life.
The little ones are great, but I'm awfully thankful for the bigger ones, too.
Firstly, I'm thankful to my Daddy for providing for me, and bringing me up "in the nurture and admonition of the Lord." And to my brothers for... helping me practice being patient and kind over and over. ... I'm still working on that one. **scowl at self** But really, Nicholas and Joey and Ben do surprise me with their thoughtfulness sometimes.

And now, if you don't mind, I shall list some of the other guys to which I am grateful.
Some of you guys I don't actually talk to (ha!), and some of you I haven't known long, but I'm still thankful for you, and you shall see why:

Stu - Thanks for the ice cream. And the other fun random times.
Danny - Thanks for listening to my frustrated rants and offering help and pizza stories.
Keith -Thanks for the many emails. I never know quite what to expect from you.
Paul -Thanks for the peppermints and yahoo emoticon wars from ages ago.
John - Thanks for the Zac Efron stories and being so fun to hang out with.
Joe -Thanks for the gum-wrapper flowers and the deadly sarcasm.
Grayson - Thanks for deciding what I should eat at Taco Bell. And for being a great guy.
Matt - Thanks for the many rides, and the breakfast on Sundays that nobody eats.
Janson - Thanks for doing Youth Choir and for being encouraging.
Jeremy - Thanks for the many times you've offered to pray for us. I appreciate that.
Ryan - Thanks for being you? Some people are just fun to be around.
Zack - Thanks for the stimulating conversations.
Isaac - Thanks for the jokes about calico hair, and whatever else we talked of back then.
Daniel - Thanks for the random humor. You're kind of a celebrity around here.

And there you have it folks!
Wasn't that nice...

I watched Fireproof again last night. It reminded me that lessons about love aren't just for married people. God loved us sacrificially, and we are supposed to show His love to everyone. Even when they don't deserve it. Even when they don't notice.
And it's hard.

"I will love you like God because of God, mighted by the power of God. I will stop expecting your love, demanding your love, trading for your love, gaming for your love. I will simply love. I am giving myself to you, and tomorrow I will do it again. I suppose the clock itself will wear thin its time before I am ended at this altar of dying and dying again.

God risked Himself on me. I will risk myself on you. And together, we will learn to love, and perhaps then, and only then, understand this gravity that drew Him unto us."

-Donald Miller (Blue Like Jazz)

What a beautiful picture of learning to love.

Speaking of Fireproof, I should like to bring your attention to a super-awesome song
from that movie. While I'm Waiting - John Waller.
For the sake of the length of this post, I'm not going to post the lyrics here. The link above has the video from the movie, plus lyrics. Click the link! It's worth it.

I purchased that song on iTunes today.
It's sort of what the theme of my life is and has been for the past two years or so.
Waiting on the Lord, and trying to live for Him as I wait.
Wait for problems to be worked out.
Wait for plans to be revealed.
Wait for people to change. (myself included)
Wait for Prince Chaaaarmiiiing....
(hey, it's Valentine's Day. Cut me some slack)
Waiting eagerly but not impatiently.

So, there's my little compilation of thoughts for the day! It was longer than I thought it would be.
Hey! I realized I still haven't listened to this week's episode of the Boundless Show! And it's bound to be great since it's about the Valentine's Day.
I think I shall leave you now.
I hope you have some chocolate to bring you solace in my absense.
lol
Love y'all!!

Caitlin

The Ski Trip Post!

Soo, it's about time I finally tell y'all about that ski trip I went on!
The thing is, once you let so many days past after an event you wanted to write about, the freshness kinda wears off, and you sort of forget what exactly it was you wanted to write.
Sad, isn't it?
But I'm going to see if I can't dig those highlights back up. :D

Firstly, I would just like to say that the people in my Sunday School class are awesome, and doing anything with them is fun. We could sit in a room and stare at each other and it would be fun.
... Maybe. lol
Maybe not. We've kinda done that before, actually. That's how Sunday School starts sometimes.
Aaanyways.

The ride there was fun.
Gracie called me! We hadn't talked in a while, so that was good. 'Cep for the not being able to hear her very well part.

We stopped and had dinner at Chick Fil A. Everybody needs to go there once with Allison so you can avoid all the terrible things we inconsiderate customers do to the place! And don't order a milkshake from her. Please. Trust me on this one.

I was the last one to finish eating, as usual.
I dropped my fries in the parking lot.
I hadn't gotten to eat them because my mouf hurted.
I was sad.
John couldn't save them.
They told me not to drop my drink too.
It was too late.
But I saved it before it spilled.

I have a feeling this post is going to get long. We're not even in North Carolina yet.

You know, I actually don't remember much else except for that it was a fun trip, and the hours passed really quickly.

Once we were settled in the hotel, Anna Leigh, Andrea, and I stayed up WAY too late relaxing. There was this CD... Ohhh man. It might would have been relaxing if we could have stopped laughing! This guy talked you through all these steps to help you relax. You had to tense up all your muscles, and then let go. "Feel the tension flying away from your toes as you breaathe iinn... one... two... three... and out... one... two... three... You may feel some twitching sensations in your neck. **soothing voice** This is normal."

I pretended to have a spasm when he said that. :D I'm totally cracking up just thinking about it!
It was hilarious. Then you were supposed to feel like you were floating... and imagine gradual immersion into a relaxing, warm bath. We had a hard time getting up Friday morning after all that relaxation.

As great as the skiing was, it was just being with my friends that was the best part.
I've never seen that much snow in person before, so that made me smile. :D Skiing was like flying. And not being able to stop. Ha! I just couldn't figure out how to make the stupid "snow plow" technique to work, so I would start sliding down the hill, faster and faster, with the wind whistling in my ears and burning my eyes, unable to control my speed, whooshing up and down the fun little hills down the slope... and praying "this is COOL! ...dear God, please don't let me hit somebody!" It was awesome. Except for the falling down in the middle of the slope 3 or 4 times and taking like 10 minutes to get the stupid skis back on. Then I decided it was quittin' time.

I went in, got some cappuccino, and sat down for a chat with Allison.
It was the strangest chat I've ever had with a friend.
I like romantic movies - she hates them.
She likes southern gospel music - I hate it.
I like my coffee with sugar and cream - she scorns any such thing.
She thinks some guy is totally hot - I think he's cute. Which is completely different, btw.
I like birds - she doesn't.
She likes weird country songs - I don't.
I love skirts and dresses - she hates them.
She likes... well, I ran out of things right now, and you get the point.

So I call her my dear Polar Opposite, though I suppose that's not exactly true, because we both like the Bourne movies and Kung Fu Panda.

Anna Leigh and I wrote notes to God on the nightstand. We were surprised to come back after going out for breakfast to find our scattered notes stacked neatly with the pen beside them.
We wrote God another note to thank him for the maids.
I wonder if they read them all...

Why did they give me a weird little coffee mug at the breakfast place? Everyone else had great mugs, and mine was small and funny shaped. They obviousy had a random assortment instead of a set. I liked that. I think it's kinda homey. Allison didn't.

On the ride home, we stopped at the Tanger Outlet in Commerce.
Philip told us we had half an hour, and then we were leaving.
Girls: "let us out! which stores should we hit first?!"
Guys: "we'll just hang here... what's the point getting out?"
I snagged some good deals. :D

I didn't realize how heavy my cute little suitcase was til I got home and had to carry it myself. Methinks having nice guys around to hold doors and take your luggage is awesome. Thanks, boys!

We were all kinda zoned out on the trip home, mostly. My iPod died. I played the same game of solitaire like 8 times, trying to win it. I finally gave up and started a new game.

Some favorite memories of each person:
Laura - Your discovery of the creepy elevator! I'm sad I missed out on seeing the creepy man.
Allison - You sitting at the table with me discussing our differences. Hilarious!
Katie - You lent me your other ski bibs. I accepted reluctantly, but I ended up really liking them. Thanks doll!! And we're both beret-wearers. Yay!
Andrea - You got me back for yelling at you. I totally wasn't expecting that. LOL
Anna Leigh - You cracked up so much when I scribbled out the scary face on the window... :D I still don't understand why it was so funny, but it was a great moment!
John - You almost killed Laura before we even got done with ski school. Priceless!
Joe - Your story about how firemen can shut down the highway anytime they want was great. You were all like "and we're like "yeah? watch us."" ... ha!
Philip - You tried to help me get the hang of snowplowing, and I got worse instead. You made a valiant effort, though, and I thank you!
Scarlett - You laughing at the weird man telling stories about his janitorial experiences.

I cracked up again thinking about that last one... You had to be there...

So, I guess that wraps up this post. I hope remembered a sufficient amount of amusing things to make it worth your time to read. :D
God has blessed me with great friends, and great opportunities.
Hopefully I'll take the opportunity to blog about Valentine's Day tomorrow!

Caitlin