A Case of Randomness

I received this "survey" on my facebook page, but figured I could post it here too!!

Basically - just list 25 random facts about yourself. So, here it goes...

1. This is my 3rd time at typing this out. My first two attempts were eaten by the Internet monsters. I’m still a little peeved about it too.

2. It took two failed attempts at this task to make me realize that I should type it in Word first.

3. I was really funny in my first two attempts.

4. Hopefully, I will be funny in this try as well.

5. I have a lot of nicknames. Michael calls me Julz or Julinator, Vic calls me JuJu, Mom calls me The Jewel, Suzy, or Suzy Q (I don’t know why), my dad called me Tootette, and my loving brother calls me by the ever affectionate term of Butthead.

6. I have played a few different instruments in my life including the recorder (haha), piano, cello, flute, and piccolo.

7. I’ve held 3 different job positions during my 7 ½ years at the bank.

8. I love my kids. Even though they may not be my blood, they are still 100% my children, and I feel so blessed to have them in my life.

9. I can pretty much always see the “other side” to an argument. I may not agree with the other side, but I normally see it and will explain why that person may be feeling a certain way.

10. I also question things a lot. I want the facts so I can form my own opinion. I think this comes from having a history of attorneys in the family.

11. By getting married, I have learned that not everyone wants to hear the “other side” and sometimes just want to be heard. This is difficult for me. I want to fix the situation.

12. My favorite color is red but I look best in lavender. I call it my signature color since I always get compliments when I wear it. A lavender day is always a good day!

13. If I can’t sleep, I count. I don’t count sheep because I start visualize them jumping over a fence and that gets me dizzy…so I just count. I know this sounds weird/funny, but it works!

14. In high school, I traveled a lot…it just wasn’t ever with my family. Between band, chorale, and other touring groups, I was able to visit most of the South Eastern states, along with Texas, Illinois, England, and Wales.

15. I’m the loud one.

16. I love card making and hope to one day be a Stampin’ Up Demonstrator…anyone want to have a party??

17. I wish everyone could just get along. Why is there always backstabbing, hurt feelings, and misunderstandings? I always want to fix these situations.

18. My spiritual gift is exhortation. Definition: Language intended to incite and encourage; advice; counsel; admonition. An earnest attempt at persuasion.

19. I can find enjoyment out of almost every type of music.

20. I once won a lip contest in the mall. You had to “kiss” a post-it note and people voted on the best pucker. I won some Origins bath salt scrub.

21. We have two dogs – Maddie and Panda. Panda tends to have accidents in the back area of the living room. We have gated that area off so they can’t get back there. For some reason, she hasn’t taken up peeing elsewhere yet. Dogs are strange.

22. One of my all-time favorite Bible verses is Phil 4:6-7. It gives me such peace.
(6Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.)

23. In high school, my BFF Jenny and I started our own business called Memory Mats. Basically, we took picture mats and decorated them to show different high school events. We even made up our own logo for the business. Her father was our investor and our only clients were our mom’s. Even so, they were still really cute!

24. Michael and I planned our wedding around football season. Oct 15 was the perfect date – no home game for OU or OSU (which was also a plus for many of the guests). We contemplated showing the OU game during the reception, but it wasn’t starting until later in the evening (plus might have been a smidgen tacky….nah…my family would have loved it!)

25. I haven't had a haircut in over a year. I need one but can't decide on a style plus I feel like its almost a waist of money since it will just keep growing. (and Yes, I know this is dumb to think this way)

0.46

$0.46. That's the amount that was owed on my credit card. A credit card that I don't use.

(Dave Ramsey anyone?).

My McAfee antivirus is scheduled for automatic renewal, and I plum forgot that it was attached to this unused card. So, after a $15 late fee and a letter stating that they couldn't get in touch with me, I realized that maybe I should take a look at the account. I shell out the $50 balance and make a mental note to check on any finance charges that may appear after the payment (they always do!).

So today, I log into the account and my balance shows a whopping $0.46. I go to make an online payment and the stupid system won't let it go through for less than $1.00. Hmm...why would I pay more than I owe?? I'm not planning on using this card as a savings account, so I call the company....

After canceling my attempt at phone payment (that included a fee of $15!! -crazy person say what??), I quickly pressed '0' to speak with a live person. While twiddling my thumbs, I listened to some groovy elevator music for a good 5-10 minutes. All this time, I'm preparing my case, going back and forth on what route to go.....do I stay pleasant and ask nicely? Do I sound professional and commanding? Do I cry and tell them what an injustice this fee is?

After the eternity of hold time, I finally get a gal on the phone. We will call her Gladys. Ms. Gladys was very pleasant. YEAH! I got a nice one. So, I simply say, "Gladys, I think it is silly to mail you guys a $0.46 check. Can you help a girl out??" My BFF then quickly giggled and said, "No problem, we will credit your account." She even mentioned the fact that it would be silly to waist a perfectly good check on $0.46.

I 'heart' her.

What's In a Name?

I think the name "Julie" sounds weird. I can say that because its mine. When I call someone named Julie, it sounds normal, but when talking about myself, it just sounds weird. If I had made it out of my mom's tummy a boy, I would have been named "Jay." I think Julie is so much more fitting (even if it sounds weird).



According to Think Baby Names, my name has a French origin and means "youthful." Oh so fitting, don't ya think? When I searched for the origin of "Jay," I found that it has a Latin origin meaning "jaybird" or "song bird." It could also come from another Latin word that means "happy." So either way, very fitting I would say. I'm totally going to start telling people they are happy as a jaybird now too.

Funny thing is my parents picked out the names only because they start with a "J." (In my opinion, the name Jay was a total cop-out). I doubt word origins were at the top of their priorities at the time. We are a family of "J" names. Actually, we are a family of "J.E" names. We have John Edward (aka Dad, Father, Daddy, Daddio), Jen Ellen (aka mom, momma, mother, mama mia), Jeff Edward (aka the brother, Beavis), and Julie Elizabeth (aka ME - totally rad chickadee).

Another fun tidbit for all you trivia fans is the fact that all of our initials spell my mom's first name (well, mom's doesn't anymore). Even when I got married, my initials didn't change - oh so fun and probably the #1 reason I knew Michael was the one for me.

(ok, I'm kidding on the last part....kinda...)

Names become so important. They become a part of who you are. People identify the name with your personality, with your character. How often do you hear someone say, "Oh, I can't name my child "Jillian" because I grew up with a girl named that?" (or some other reason) The name becomes the person.

So, hi, my name is Julie....I guess that makes me youthful at heart with a little bit a weird mixed in for good measure.

Bankers can party?

Saturday night, Michael and I attended my work Winter Party. We aren't trying to be politically correct (we used to have a Christmas Party). Last year, the date was moved to January, and since it seems extremely silly to call it a Christmas Party in January, it is now deemed a Winter Party.

The past two years I've been on the planning committee. Basically, my main job duty is getting the table decorations in order. I get a little particular on the details, but my fellow committee members are wonderful about not getting their feelings hurt when I tell them that you can't have bright red streamers at an "elegant" styled event. It just won't fly.

The evening begins with a short social time for people to chit-chat with co-workers and spouses and locate a table to sit at for the evening. We then enjoy a buffet dinner with some sort of yummy dessert to follow. After dinner, the bank executives have a short program which includes announcing the Employee of Year. (no, I didn't win....so sad). Once the program is wrapped up, everyone grabs their free steaks (I think we get 8 of them) and gets ready for the DJ and Cash give-away time. Normally, this is the one time each year when you will see me out dancing away with no fear of judgment for looking stupid. (I often dance silly and totally own that fact - I can do a mean Q-tip dance).

I even won some cash too!! Sweet! Too bad its already spent, but hopefully our Wi-Fi connection will be a bit better on our desktop now. (I totally feel a little ADD with this post...oh look a kitty...)



The evening was a great success. Michael even seemed to enjoy it - I think he just enjoys watching bankers try to dance.

PJ's, Ice Cream, and Lights

So, I know I've become a slacker, but I was on vacation and took it to heart by doing a whole lot of nuttin' (including updating my blog). Now that our house is back to normal, I guess I should get back in the grind of blogging.

Christmas was great this year. Among the Nephew's celebratory events included our 2nd Annual Light Watching Extravaganza. On the Saturday before Christmas (that would make it the 20th), the 4 of us dressed down in our PJ's (or pre-j's for some), stopped by Sonic for an ice cream involved beverage, and traveled around Ponca City America to look at lights.

We stopped by my mom's house so she could document the occasion for us. How awesome is her fireplace??? They just finished remodeling the house and it turned out beautiful.

So anyway, after looking at all the pretty lights, we drove back home. Michael and I decided to surprise the kids by seeing if they wanted to open their presents early. The kiddos quickly squealed with delight and said yes. We figured that since the kids were going to their mom's house on Christmas evening, they wouldn't have much time to enjoy their gifts...so why not just open them early!?! It seemed to go over well too and definitely made the week more relaxing.

Hope everyone had a great Christmas Season! Merry Christmas!! (a little late)

A sheer crack up!

Last night was a special night at Awana's. Not only did it ring in the 2 week break (yeah!) but the kids (and adults)also dressed down in their PJ's, listened to the Pastor and his wife Laurie read/acted out the Christmas story, and made sheep Christmas tree ornaments.

Back story: I help the 1st graders. Austin is in 2nd grade. Two types of yarn choices - one fluffy and one not. In my opinion, the fluffy one was WAY cuter. So, using my leader connection skills, I make sure that Austin gets some of the fluffy yarn for his sheep. I feel like I'm watching out for my kid and being a good parent by hooking him up with the starts of a great sheep...

So, fast forward through the night...It was a crazy night, but the kids all seemed to have fun. (Leaders - not so much). We are getting ready to leave and Austin is showing off his sheep to me. (which by the way he named Candy because I guess they both like sweets) He cut off almost all the yarn....basically sheering the sheep in a way. When I asked him why he cut it off, he simply said, "it was too fluffy." So cracked me up. Here, I think I'm looking out for the little guy when I should have just let him pick the yarn himself. Ok, I know in the picture, the sheep looks fluffy, but it was supposed to be TWICE (maybe even three times) that size with yarn.

Still, little Ms. Candy Sheep (i think its a girl) is pretty darn cute and will proudly be displayed annually at our house.

Christmas Picture Outtakes

A couple of nights ago our family took our annual Christmas picture together. For some reason when a camera is involved, goofiness ensues...










MERRY CHRISTMAS!!