When was the last time you watched something so scary, cringe-worthy, or unbelievably tacky — in a movie, on TV, or in real life — you had to cover your eyes?

It was my own fault. I chose the destination. Why didn’t I choose a different area? Seeing the Rocky Mountains was on my bucket list. I wanted to stop somewhere and take pictures.
We were about three hours outside of Denver. Lucas wanted to go spend time in the mountains. So I had the brilliant idea to go see the mountains closer to Denver. I misjudged when the sun would be setting.
Who knew it would get dark so quickly. No one ever knows when the rain is coming or how long it will last.
So there we were driving through the Rocky Mountains at night during a thunderstorm. We were at the point in the mountains where the inclines are steeper and there are runaway truck ramps.
There were a few times that I thought we should stop so I could take pictures. But I didn’t say anything. Why didn’t I say something? I guess I thought we were in a race against the sunset. We totally lost the race.
We were so close to our destination. But the road to the mountain was especially curvy. I closed my eyes several times because I thought we might be going over the edge. At any moment, I was positive that an elk or a moose was going to jump out at us.
Of course, I could not get a signal. I was on the verge of a meltdown. So it was time to go home. If only I could get my GPS to work faster. The GPS finally decided to come back on. I was so relieved.
We should have stayed in the area where we started. Hopefully, I’ll remember next time. At least I can cross the Rocky Mountains off of the bucket list. So it was not a total loss.

http://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_prompt/cant-watch-this/

A few days ago, I saw a man with a shirt that said “I Beat Anorexia.” He was a little overweight. Of course, I laughed at the irony. Then I remembered, I beat anorexia. It wasn’t so funny.
Why would someone basically starve themselves? For vanity? Maybe it’s why people start eating less. It’s not the whole reason.
Back then, it was hard to explain why I didn’t want to eat. At first, people at school thought I didn’t have lunch money. My volleyball coach was horrified by my meal choice of a candy bar and diet soda. It was one of the few times that I ate anything for lunch that year. I was 14. I was not fat. On a good day, I weighed 110 pounds. On not so good days, I was down to 105.
Throughout high school, I struggled with eating.
So I struggled because I wanted to weigh less. If I weighed less, my periods would stop, which was my original goal. Periods = intense pain. Someone told me the periods would stop if I weighed under 100.
There were also issues with depression that did not help my situation.
In hindsight, it was the most unhealthy choice ever made. I should have found a different solution by asking someone like a doctor or a nurse. There were probably articles or books. I did not do my research.
I’m not sure why I started eating again. I discovered Chinese food,which helped. The depression issues have been under control.
So now I’m a little overweight and kicking anorexia’s butt every day.

The prompt is to list 10 personal events of the last decade.

1. Birth of Little Sister #1.
2. Divorce.
3. Homeless in Florida
4. Transitional Housing
5. Birth of Little Sister #2.
6. Met Lucas
7. STNA license
8. Blogging
9. Photo pit & press passes
10. Moved in with Lucas

It’s been an interesting decade.

You just inherited a dilapidated, crumbling-down grand mansion in the countryside. Assuming money is no issue, what do you do with it?

If there is anything of the building that can be saved, I would want to save it. If the structure pr foundation are bad, then it’s time to scrap the whole mess and start over. However, if we can’t save the house, I would like to find old pictures of the mansion. Maybe we can make a new building based on the old mansion. 

Whenever I see an old house, I wish I could fix it up like those guys on “Property Brothers” or “Flip This House.” Unfortunately, I am not a handyman, except in my daydreams. 

http://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_prompt/reviving-bricks/

You’re at the beach with some friends and/or family, enjoying the sun, nibbling on some watermelon. All of a sudden, within seconds, the weather shifts and hail starts descending from the sky. Write a post about what happens next.

Something like this happened to us on Wednesday or maybe it was Thursday. We had been planning to go to the beach since the day before. It was at a beach none of us had been to before. The rumor was that the water was pretty clean. Since we live near Lake Erie, clean water without algae is a big deal. Little Sister #1 also hates dirty water. Or so she says. When we get to the beach, she is usually the second one in the water. Little Sister #2 is almost always first because she is so fast.

It started to rain sometime in the wee hours of the night. It continued to rain. And rain. We still packed up for the beach just in case it stopped. By 4 p.m., we were pretty sure the beach trip was not going to happen.

One of us was thinking and had the idea to go to one of the water parks in the area. There are about five water parks in the area.  Little Sister #1 and Little Sister #2 had so much fun. Little Sister #2 went on the water slide at least twenty times.

Little Sister #1 wanted to go back the next day. I think she was disappointed that we went to an actual beach instead. She was still the second one in the water at the beach. Don’t tell her she’s having fun. 

http://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_prompt/sudden-shifts/

http://mybookself.org/2014/07/25/very-inspiring-blogger-award/

I’d like to thank My Book Self http://mybookself.org/2014/07/25/very-inspiring-blogger-award/. I don’t even know your real name . . . You are headed for blogging greatness My Book Self. Thank you so much.

The rules are:
The nominee shall display the Very Inspiring Blogger Award logo on her/his blog, and link to the blog they got nominated from.
The nominee shall nominate fifteen (15) bloggers she/he admires, by linking to their blogs and informing them about it.
Write three things that inspired you the most this week.

Inspiring Things:
1. My kids. They always inspire me to think of something fun for them to do.
2. My boyfriend. He said maybe we’ll get married sooner if I cooked more. Have you seen all of my cooking posts? lol I’ve been tearing it up in the kitchen this week.
3. There are so many people out there dealing with huge issues and making the most of their life. Those people are really inspiring.

Bloggers that Inspire Me:

1. Aussa Lorens: http://aussalorens.com/ Hacker. Ninja. Hooker. Spy. She is awesome. I want my blog to be as awesome as hers.

2. Jeremy Farmer. http://theboypoetremembers.wordpress.com/ and another blog at http://jeremysreadingroom.wordpress.com/2014/07/25/jane-austen-emma-chapter-6/. The Boypoet Remembers. He writes about all sorts of things, transgender issues, books. What is not to love?

3. Michelle at http://hopethehappyhugger.wordpress.com/. She has inspired me to get in touch with my wild side. No, not really. But I have been taking more photos of animals and she is to blame. 🙂

4. Kate at http://didthatjusthappenblog.wordpress.com/. I’m not sure why but I really want to make her proud. So if I accomplish anything, she is to blame. 🙂

5. Becky at http://isurvivedamurderattackmyfamilydidnt.com/. She is a wonderful person. She has overcome so much. I can’t even put it into words. She is TRULY an inspiration.

6. Barbara at Idealistic Rebel. http://idealisticrebel.wordpress.com/

7. Gene at Sourcerer. http://sourcererblog.wordpress.com/ One time he asked me if I wrote about music. At the time, I didn’t. But I thought it was a possibility. So he inspired me to look into what is possible.

8. Jenna at A Savory Feast. http://www.asavoryfeast.com/ She and Megan Walker http://www.thewalkerfiresidechats.blogspot.com/ host Hump Day Happenings. It’s a linky party. They have lots of food, crafty posts that inspire me to cook and be crafty.

9. Cee at http://ceenphotography.com/. I love Cee’s blog. She has photo challenges and introvert challenges. She makes me want to be a better photographer.

I know it says 15. But I’m going to leave it at 9. 9 is the luckiest number. No, not really but anymore would make me a faker.

Congratulations to all of the inspiring bloggers! You guys rock! 🙂

Dear Readers,
We are on day six of Darling Daughter’s quest to vegetarianism. We have encountered picky eaters, little sisters, food allergies and missing ingredients.
I found a recipe for garlic hummus. Darling Daughter, Lucas and I liked the hummus. Little Sisters #1 and #2 did not enjoy the hummus. The mission is still a success!
I substituted a Roma tomato for lemon juice. The lemon juice was used for chicken piccata. We are trading chicken for chick peas these days.

Join me again on day nine of the quest. I’m off the hook for day seven and eight. In the meantime, I will be searching for new recipes and nicknames for Little Sisters #1 and #2.

I used the following recipe for a guideline.

http://saltysweetsnsneaks.wordpress.com/2011/08/07/healthy-homemade-garlic-hummus-no-tahini-needed/

http://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_photo_challenge/summer-lovin/