Tessa shares her ice cream sandwich with her little sister Emma.  (We were at Rogene's company picnic.)

My husband Rogene (piano), brother-in-law Darryl (singing/guitar), niece Gabriella (bass) and nephew Jordan (drums) played these two songs for our praise service at church last week.  Enjoy!

Chilihead over at Don't Try This At Home had a Blogging Story Carnival a while ago.  Since July 14 (posting late again!) was my blogoversary, I thought I'd join in the fun and give you all some of my blogging history.

 Tell Your Blogging Story

• How did you start blogging?

My husband told me about blogs years ago.  He knows I love to read, and thought I would be interested.  I found some blogs I liked (about infertility or parenting) and read them for years before I thought of starting one of my own.  Friday night, July 14, 2006,  I was looking at my pictures in Picasa, and I saw a "Blog This" button.  I clicked on the button, and now, a year later I'm still going strong.  Click here to see my very first post.

• Did you intend to be a blog w/a following? If so, how did you go about it?

I've always wanted my following to be family and friends (some who live far away).  I wanted this blog to be a way for us to keep in touch. 

• What do you hope to achieve or accomplish with your blog? Have you been successful? If not, do you have a plan to achieve those goals?

My goal for this blog is for it to be a history record for me and my family to read in years to come… and specifically for my daughters, so they can see what their childhood was like.   When extended family members and friends who we get to see very seldom tell us they read my blog I feel successful.

• Has the focus of your blog changed since you started blogging? How?

Yes, for a while I got caught up in doing Thursday Thirteen, Works for Me Wednesday and that type of thing.  It was fun to have a lot of blog traffic.  But after a while I realized that what I really want is for this to be more of a family website.

• What do you know now that you wish you'd known when you started?

How easy it is to blog, and how fun. 

• Do you make money with your blog?

No.  I wouldn't be opposed to making money with my blog, but I don't get enough traffic.

• Does your immediate or extended family know about your blog? If so, do they read it? If not, why?

Yes.

• What two pieces of advice would you give to a new blogger?

1. Don't be afraid to start.  Just jump right in.

2.  Don't write anything that you don't want someone to find.  They will find it.  And you will be sorry.

More blog catching up to do… back on June 30 Lisa at Our7Qtpies tagged me for the 5 Random Questions Meme.

The rules according to Lisa… "You get tagged with 5 random questions, you answer them, and then make up five of your own to tag someone with."

Here are Lisa's questions for me…

1. What was it about your spouse that made you decide he/she was the one?

I had prayed about finding Mr. Right.  God made it pretty clear to me that Rogene was Mr. Right, so I had no hesitation marrying him.  It has been over 16 years and I still feel so lucky to be married to Rogene.  He is the best husband ever.

2. What was your favorite pet in your entire life? And why?

I had a albino dwarf rabbit when I was in high school named Button.  I loved that little rabbit even though she left rabbit pellets all over the place, including my closet and inside my shoes.

3. What one thing should you give up? (coke, cookies, computer?)

Coffee.

4. What is your most embarrassing moment? Ok, at least name an embarrassing moment!

I went to a banquet when I was in college where the girls ask the guys.  I had asked a friend and there was all sorts of speculation about if I liked him or not, which made me VERY uncomfortable.  The big night came.  I had bought him a beautiful white rose boutonniere.  It looked absolutely perfect, but almost immediately after I pinned it to his suit jacket it started to look a little brown.  As the evening wore on, the rose died completely, turned yellowy brown and withery and just looked terrible.  People were joking that I bought him a dead rose, and it was so embarrassing.  I can hardly think about it to this day.  Kevin, if you ever find this blog… please know that I never meant to buy you a dead rose. 

5. What is your favorite/most interesting/weirdest job you've ever held?

This is not my favorite job… it is the weirdest one I've ever had.  When I was in high school at a boarding academy it was my job to get the salad bar at the cafeteria ready every day.  I chopped up veggies, opened cans of olives and pineapple, set the salad bar up.  We made our own salad dressing every day, and my co-worker Janet and I would add a different spice to the Thousand Island dressing every day (that the recipe did NOT call for).  Sometimes dill, sometimes oregano, sometimes paprika, sometimes cumin, whatever we could find.  We never got complaints, but I always wondered if anyone could tell that we did that.

I tag The Girl with Moxie, Terrific Teens and Oregon Trails End to answer these five random questions and post them on their blog.  Can you tell that I'm trying to get my mom (Oregon Trails End) and sister (Terrific Teens) back into blogging?

1.  What is your favorite flower?  Why?

2.  What is the nicest thing a guy has ever said to you?  The worst thing?

3.  What is your favorite food?

4.  What is your best memory from grade school?

5.  What are you the most proud of?

Please leave me a comment if you play along so I can come read your answers.