The Mid February Delurk

Paul and chopsticks

I haven't been up to too much lately. Between getting a cold and working on classwork, it's pretty quiet so long as Paul is down for a nap. I'm trying to finish up my university 100 class before I head off to Louisiana next week. I just have to finish watching the videos (complete with early 90s guy who can't seem to decide if he's into glam metal or grunge) and the last couple of chapters of written work.

I don't celebrate Valentine's day, but I've been craving fried rice all week long, so we went to Pei Wei after Clayton got back from work. I actually enjoy going out to eat with Paul now. We're mostly past the point where he "needs" to crawl under the table, randomly season his food, or refuse to be entertained. He snacked on an orange while we were waiting for our food, and decided to try chopsticks while he was waiting for his food to cool. He still has to cheat, but at least it seems that he's figured out that the chopsticks aren't broken.

Yesterday, we went to the open house at the preschool we've been eying for him. I kept hearing that preschool signups here are nuts, so I was going to leave obscenely early so I could get one of the first spots in line. I was about halfway there, when they announced our county's schools were on a two hour delay. I went back home, catnapped, and then went back out a couple hours later. Fortunately for me, the icy weather kept several people at home, so I ended up first in line. Paul really enjoyed the open house, especially the huge laundry buckets of Lego and the preschooler sized "house" area. His teachers seemed very nice, although Paul wasn't sure if "a man can be a teacher". He was a little disappointed that we couldn't go to school today.

Top 10 Reasons I Love You Fill in the Blank

Since I got just over 1k hits from people searching for "Top 10 Reasons I Love You", I thought I'd help you out for the next time you need a list of reasons. I know writing lists like these can be hard for some people, so I've decided to do one in the style of a writing prompt. Just fill the blank with what the parentheses ask for, and you have your own personalized list. Feel free to elaborate as much as you want.

1. I love you because you always remember (something important to me).
2. I love you because you (did something really unexpected that made me happy).
3. I love you because you (do something that always gets me to smile even if I've had a really bad day).
4. I love you because you (do some chore that I detest and don't complain about it).
5. I love you because you (do some quirky thing that always makes me smile).
6. I love you because you (always do your best to get along with my friends and family, and you don't make me choose between you and them).
7. I love you because you noticed that/supported me when (I finished something I struggled with...ie - losing weight, going back to college, sold my first story).
8. I love you because you (don't mind me going to girls/boys night out every week)
9. I love you because you (understand when I made a mistake and didn't do such a great job fixing it).
10. I love you because you (even if I'm not a "10", you never make me feel like you're constantly making notes of the areas I fall short in).

Valentine’s Days thoughts

When I think of the ideal romantic love, I think of my Grandpa Brig and Grandma Colleen. They met when my grandpa was stationed in Pensacola during World War II. They met when she was 15 and he was 20. I find it amazing that even after 54 years together, they still did things like walking around the block holding hands. When you saw them look at each other, it was like seeing two teenagers who've just discovered love staring into each others eyes. Read more »