More Answers...

So yes...I admit...I am a slacker, but it is better late than never right!? Here are some more of the questions and answers. I think that I got all of them, with the exception of the story of Shawn and I...which is coming soon! I promise!

Julie of Love, Laughter, & Laundry asked

How many children do you want to have?

I grew up in a large family. I have 5 brothers and 2 sisters. I loved being part of a big family, but I don’t think that I could handle 8 children. I have always said that I wanted at least 4, but we figure that we will take them one (hopefully) at a time. I figure that Heavenly Father will let me know when we are “done.”

What is your favorite thing to do if you have a day with no kids or husband?

Hmm…part of me wants to say sleep, but then I would probably feel guilty if that was what I did. I love going out with friends. I love being social, and think a day is great when I get to spend time chatting with people….and also eating. I love good food!

Little Momma of It's a Wonderful Life & KellyAnn of The Hatch Batch asked

How many blogs do you read a day?

Hahaha…Shawn would probably say that is all I do all day. I use a feed reader called Bloglines that monitors a ton of blogs that I subscribe to (I love it! I talk about it here). It is kinda embarrassing to say, but I have over 100 blogs that I subscribe to. The thing is that a lot of them do not post every single day (some of them haven’t posted in months!), and there are days that I don’t get to read each new post. I probably spend 20 to 30 minutes (sometimes longer depending on my spare time) reading different blogs.

Babystepper (I do know her real name cuz I am cool :), but am sworn to secrecy) of Babysteps asks

What's your favorite kind of sandwich?

Sandwiches are yummy. When it comes to food…I like almost everything. The only thing that I can’t stand is seafood. I don’t think I have a favorite sandwich. It just depends on the kind of mood I am in. Sometimes I like them toasted, sometimes I like them cold. It does have to have some sort of meat, and a must is PICKLES! I LOVE pickles!

KellyAnn of The Hatch Batch also asked

What is the best vacation you have ever been on?

The best vacation that I have been on alone with Shawn was our honeymoon. We went to Spain for a little over a week, and it was wonderful. Shawn had served a mission in Madrid, and so we went back there. It was like having my personal guide. He knew where to go, and what to see…plus he spoke the language! We had so much fun together, and can’t wait to go back again. With our kids, it would have to be our trip to Disneyworld. We went for 10 days! Kids can be so demanding, and sometimes a vacation with them is more work than it is worth. We managed to have so much fun, and Caden still talks about it to this day. Because we had so much time to spend there we were able to relax, and not feel rushed. I absolutely loved it!

Ashley of I Believe in Miracles asked

If you could have your dream job, what would it be and why?

I have always dreamed of being able to play in an orchestra for movie soundtracks. I have never been to keen on playing solo on my violin, but I love to play in orchestras. There is something about being part of a team that is able to make something so beautiful. I always thought it would be cool to be able to go to a movie, and while watching it hear something that I actually played in. The thing about musical performance is that is almost all you have time for. One of the professors that I took from at ASU was an excellent musician. She had traveled the world playing in top orchestras…yet in the end she really had nothing to show for it. She lived all alone in a large house with a bunch of cats. I realized that I loved playing, but not enough to give up sharing my life with someone that I loved. In my mind it isn't worth sacrificing that much of my time and effort if I have no one to share it with.

Emily of Cairnsliving asked

Do you like English people?

I am actually fascinated with the English culture. I love meeting new people, and going to new places. Shawn is actually going to be traveling to the UK on Saturday (yes…when I will be 37 weeks pregnant!…but that is for another post) to instruct a course for his job. His boss has also touched on seeing if we would be up to living there for 2 months this summer! I am kinda excited about it because I have never lived anywhere else, but in AZ! We will see if it actually happens, but I would love to have the opportunity to spend some real time exploring England, and getting to know the people there.

Heather of The Fantastic Five (I would link her, but she is private!) asked

Do you have names picked out?

I have a long list of names for both genders that we need to sit down, and widdle down. So there is nothing really settled on this homefront…but obviously needs to be done! Do you guys have any suggestions of names that you like?

Katie of The Layton Family asked

Would you ever consider moving close to Queen Creek?

I really have nothing against Queen Creek, but it would be far too long of a commute for Shawn. I also like living where we are…so it is hard to imagine moving anywhere else.

Starla of The Evans Family asked

When are you guys going to come visit us in Memphis, TN?

I would love to come to Memphis! Obviously we can’t come anytime real soon, but after we have the baby we will have to look into when we can get away. I think the kids would have a blast, and so would we!

Okay....so there it is. I had fun answering your questions, and to see some of you come out of the woodwork. I do know there are still some that are lurking back there...don't be afraid to comment....I don't bite I promise! Do you have any more burning questions? Thanks for the ones that you did ask...and stay tuned for Our Love Story.

You asked...Part Two

If you missed the answers to the last question and answer you can find it here.

Becky from Tiffany & Co asked

What is inside the envelope?

It turns out that Julie of Truly Delightful in Everyway wants to know the same thing, and along the same lines…Carey of care{y}t-tops and Sandy of The Smith Family want to know if I am having a boy or a girl. And Little Momma of It’s a Wonderful Life asked if I would prefer one or the other with this next one.

Those of you who have been reading for the last couple of months know exactly what envelope Becky is talking about. If not you can read about it here. Yes, that is right…back in October we went and got our ultrasound. Instead of finding out the sex, we had the tech print out the ‘evidence’. She sealed and stapled it and gave it to me…and to this day it remains unopened.

Before I ever got pregnant with this third baby, I thought it would be fun to ‘not find out’. Back in the day when my mother was having children they didn’t even have a choice. One of the funnest things I remember about my younger brother being born was the anticipation of finding out what my mom was having. Since I have a boy and a girl already, I thought this would be the perfect time to keep it a mystery. I would be happy with either one so I think that is why I am so content with not knowing.

There have been times during these past few months where I thought it would be nice to know, but the anticipation of waiting keeps me from looking. I have found it somewhat amusing at how much it gets to people that I haven’t opened the envelope yet. I know it is driving a lot of you crazy, but I am really excited. Now we are at the point where it would be silly to look. I am due on March 7th so it means that I only have about 7 weeks left…and that is if I go into labor on time. With Caden I was 3 days late, and with Sydney I was 9 days early. So it could go either way. I figure that I have waited this long…I can wait just a little more.

So the only thing that I know for sure is inside that envelope is a piece of paper that has a picture of the certain anatomy of a baby. I think we may have to have a contest in the near future, and you all can guess what you think we are having, when the baby will be born and all the other fun stats (weight & height)

April of The Bethea Bunch asked

Do you have any pets, and if so, what kind?

Why in the world would I need any pets…I have one already…hee hee. The real answer is No. This post pretty much sums it up for us. I have nothing against pets themselves, I just prefer them not to be in our house. To me it is just another thing that I would have to take care of. The only problem is that a pet will never grow up or become more independent. We may eventually get a pet, but that will be when the kids are old enough to take care of it, and most likely it will be an outdoor pet. So I am sorry to all you pet lovers out there. For me, it just isn’t in the cards.

I had a couple of people ask about Shawn & me (how we met, how long we have been together, and how I knew he was the one etc…) so the next post will be dedicated to our little story. Also if you think of anything else you would like to know, don't hesitate to ask!

You asked...

I thought that I would just start answering the questions in the order that they were asked. In order to not have a mega long post. I will only answer a few at a time. So here we go…

Wendy of An Iowa Mom asks 4 questions…

What is my ONE favorite movie, song, book, and thing…and why?

As I contemplated all the different movies that I have seen in my lifetime it was a little difficult to actually pick just one. My parents owned 3 video stores when I was young, and I think my love in movies has been instilled in me from birth. I seriously can watch movies all day long! As strange as it may seem to some who have seen this movie, one of my favorites is Brokedown Palace. It is about 2 girls who go change their plans of taking a Senior trip to Hawaii and go to Thailand instead. They end up getting framed for drug trafficking, and are placed in a prison that people have nicknamed the Brokedown Palace. There is something about the movie where I can’t help but put myself in their place each time. I wonder how I would react if put in the same situation. Without fail, each time I watch it, I am brought to tears by the ending. I always wonder if I would be strong enough to make such a sacrifice for another.

As for songs…I again have many favorites. I decided to take the classical route with this one. The one song that without fail always gets me going is Atonin Dvorak’s New World Symphony. When I was a junior in High School I made regional Orchestra and this was one of the songs that we played. I don’t know what it is, but this song just fills me with so much energy. I think it was brilliantly written, and always brings me back to the time when I played it myself. Here is a playlist with the song. I also included the other song that we played in regionals that year. I love them both.

My favorite book would have to be The Last Valentine by James Michael Pratt. I read this book a good ten years ago, but can read it over and over again. It has such a great message of love, and enduring love. It is a fictional story, but can give you a deeper understanding of what it really means to love another not only romantically, but in every day relationships.

My favorite thing in the world? Hmmm…that really is a loaded question of which I could come up with plenty of answers. I will settle on my answer being CHOCOLATE, or more importantly Chocolate with Peanut Butter. I truly think the combination is the most heavenly thing in the world! Mmmmm

There are plenty of more questions that I will be working on so stay tuned!

BTW--I can't get the player to work right, but if you click on the part that says "Launch Standalone Player" it will bring the songs up for you. Enjoy listening. :)

Come on...you know you are dying to ask

You may have been able to tell that I am kinda in a blog funk right now. I haven't been posting near as much as I have in the past. It isn't that there isn't things going on here...I just can't get my mind out of a funk. So...some of you may or may not know, but sometime in the last week or two it was National De-Lurk Week. That means that you were supposed to have "come out of hiding, and commented on blogs that you read, but never comment on." I know there are people out there that read my blog, but never comment....So I am now calling you all out.

In order to get me out of my funk, and give me something to blog about...I want you to ask me anything you would like to know about me, or just any question that you have at all! I may or may not have an interesting answer, but this way you can get to know me a little better...and I can see who is actually peeking into my little life with my family.

So ASK AWAY! Leave a comment, or if you can't figure that out...then email me at crissybug(at)gmail(dot)com with your question. Please don't be afraid to ask...I don't want to be dissapointed because only one person asks a question!