hi again

Un-contrary to my usual blogging tendencies, I am giving you a double whammy. :-D

Today, *fanfare please* *ooh and a drumroll too* I ran my first 5k. :-D I was only planning on running a mile, and then we're getting to the end of the mile and Dad's like, "Settle in so that you can keep going." And I'm like, "water break?" And he's like, "you don't need it." I think I was half thinking, well, if I do need it I can always say I told you so, plus I didn't want to "chicken out," so to speak. I was kind of sick of giving up on things I guess. Not that it wasn't semi-torture. Ha. We did stop for a water break after the second time, cuz I was half-planning on stopping, but I pretty much didn't have enough breath to argue with him so I went again. I liked the last half of the third mile the best I think--I didn't look most of the time. I had my eyes half closed. Oooh and going down this huge hill, the wind blowing so hard, the sun in my eyes...that's the best way to run. I really enjoyed that bit of it. And then the flat stretch after it where I usually end up in pain (mostly all in my head) I just kept my eyes half-closed the way they were when the sun was in my eyes so I wasn't agonizing about how much there was left--plus I got into a good breathing rhythm on the hill when I wasn't thinking about breathing. :-) So I survived. Then my head hurt a lot when I stopped. And my legs are actually sore, so that's nice. Wow, I'm out of breath just thinking about it again. :-D

So, I ran my first 5k, and got in an hour of driving, and then drove around my first accident too. We had to off-road it. :-) It didn't look like a really bad one--or maybe since I was driving I just didn't notice, but the cars didn't look too badly scratched up to me. *shrug* idk.
Ok, while I'm on the subject of driving, WHY is there such a huge disparity between the way you're supposed to drive and the way everyone drives. Issue numero uno: everyone drives at least 5 miles over the speed limit most of the time. It's called the LIMIT--L-I-M-I-T. Issue numero dos: you're supposed to stop twice at stopsigns and, say, stoplights where you're turning right. Once to stop behind the white line/stopsign/sidewalk, and once to pull up to check to see if it's ok to go. If you actually do this, the people around you will freak out because you stopped once, so they think you're just going to pull out when there are cars coming. ??? That seems like a rule that would be pretty easy to change--it's semi-pointless. People don't die from not following that. Speeding, however...

Oh, and if all goes well, J, G, and Z are coming to church tomorrow. In case you didn't know, that's slang for JAson, AnGIE, and baby Zach. I took about ten videos of him when we visited them today--if you can't get through the crowd to get a good look at him tomorrow, I'll show them to you. :-)

Ok. I'm finally going to go use the new Razr. Here I come, Meg! :-} Don't forget, you can call us anytime on the weekend. :-D contact me some other way for the number. :-D

hi everyone!

1. I miss you. The only people I don't miss are a. people I don't know and b. my family because we've spent the last 5 days in nice quality time. :-)
2. We should get together. Oh, wait, christmas break is almost over.
3. Christmas break ROCKED!!
4. We got 2 big presents this year: a little video camera and a RAZR. We were expecting the video camera, like, as far as a big gift goes it's not surprising to get one, but the cell phone--we didn't even scream, we were so shocked. So, we can talk all we want on the weekends and after 9 and maybe if Dad's work schedule ever calms down he'll have some minutes left over for us to use. :-D
5. I slept in until 10:45 on Tuesday and I think I played clue most of the rest of the day (yes, I got clue for Christmas!!! :-D)
6. I can't remember what my Christmas Break goals were. I should check and look at them.
7. Ooh, somebody's calling us! (not on the Razr)
8. Work on my bulletin board is just about complete. *Ahem* I still have to put everything on it, but at least I have it all designed on the computer--like, all the words are formatted nicely. :-D

I don't know what else to say except to urge you with the utmost oomph to call us and schedule a time to get together!!!!!! Or just call and talk about nice deep, meaningful subjects. Please!!!??? also, I'd also encourage you to leave a nice comment or two about how your Christmas was. Ok? Ok. I'll thank you after you comply. :-D

Sincerely,
KATIE!!!!!!

Survivor!

Watch out guys, I'm getting philosophical!! Stay back 10 feet! :-P

Ok, I guess I have to admit now that I really do watch Survivor, since I actually cared about what happened last night. Haha. Yul probably deserved the money more in terms of how he played the game, but Ozzy deserved it so that he could go to school. I think Yul should give him a couple thousand bucks to get started. :-) I thought it was interesting also that they both wanted to use it to make the world a better place--and they actually seemed fairly sincere. Not to mention, none of the final four had outright betrayed anyone. I thought it was very cool that they stuck together through the end.

And someone made the comment--Sundra, perhaps--that the final four didn't stick together because they were all minorities or something like that, they were loyal to each other simply on the basis of who they were. Hey, there's always gonna be prejudice in the world, but at least there will always be people who realize the insides count more than the outsides. I think that splitting them up by race in the beginning pretty much proved that. I also think it's funny that people, even people who aren't prejudiced, made a fuss about splitting them up by race. If you really think that all races will perform equally, why does it matter if they get pitted against each other? No one would care if they put all the redheads, blondes, brunettes and ...um...people-with-black-hair into different groups, because no one thinks that redheads will do better than brunettes. It's just an easy way to split them up. It's just interesting...:-)

And, has anyone else noticed that these kinds of reality tv shows survive (no pun intended) because everyone loves it at the end when they say stuff like, "It made me realize I could do anything" "I never knew how strong I was" "It's made me a lot more confident" ?? Everyone wants that kind of experience, but it's not easy, so most shy away from it. Let me just say I am NOT the next Survivor!!! If I could get through living out in the wilderness and eating things that were alive 2 minutes ago and are raw and get into a good alliance and everything, I could never get through a tribal council without saying something stupid and having everyone hate me! Or, Jeff would put me on the spot and I'd totally mangle whatever I was trying to say. You are not looking at a Survivor. :-D

Ok, I'll stop being philosophical for at least ten minutes. :-)

the first official day of break, and:

4(b). Finish The Children of Willesden Lane.

I finished it this morning after breakfast. I was reading it during breakfast, then I was like, hey, I should just finish it since I'm not on a schedule. Yay! and then, of course, since it's about a girl who plays the piano through WW2, I practiced piano for about half an hour. I have my lesson tomorrow! Yay! Also, today I'm going to work on my bulletin board.

Oh, and from the 50 list:

22. Make someone's day.

Cuz I'm pretty sure that singing at the Marco's pizza place on Saturday night made their day. :-) We were singing at Game Trader, next door, and when we were done we went over to Marco's and sang for them. They clapped after every song and paid attention while we sang, so we weren't just background music. And then they ended up giving us our pizza half off. So that was sweet.

Onward ho then! :-) Call me and I'll talk! Oh, and I can't decide whether this counts or not: Meghan and I talked on the phone for 2 hours yesterday. But we would've done that even if it wasn't Christmas break. So I'm thinking I'll half count it and half not by changing it to:

2. Talk on the phone for FIVE hours (not straight, not with one person, just total. :-)

Alright, anyway, talk to you later!

k. \L/ a. \U/ t. \V/ i. \U/ e.

i think

that mood rings wouldn't really help girls (or guys) that much, because they'd either be changing so quickly that they'd be muddy, or they'd be tie-dyed. :-) :-P

whew, it's only the first day and I can already cross one off!

5. Load all our crazy pictures onto i. the computer. ii. myspace.

So go check them out! :-) the link is in my link list and the link to the pictures (in case you're unfamilar with myspace) is right under the picture of us. abby actually loaded them onto the computer, but what can I say, it got done! adios amigos! luv you all!

10 THINGS TO DO ON CHRISTMAS BREAK

1. Redecorate my bulletin board.
2. Talk on the phone for 3 hours (not straight, not with one person, just total. :-)
3. Get all the rest of my Christmas presents. Cutting it close, aren't I?
4. Read 2 books. At least. And also, finish The Children of Willesden Lane.
5. Load all our crazy pictures onto i. the computer. ii. myspace.
6. Not pig out on more than 3 of the days: Christmas Eve, Christmas, and New Year's Eve. :-)
7. Practice piano for 15 mins every day. (At least. :-)
8. Watch 2 movies. (Ha. That'll get done without ME trying.) Oh, more specific: Watch the live version of How the Grinch stole Christmas and It's a Wonderful Life.
9. Make fudge.
10. Do something extra-Christmasily-nice for someone.

How's that sound? Any other suggestions? <<<- Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, Feliz Navidad, and Joyeux Noel!

hey guys, it's been awhile!

What's up:

I am now seventeen. :O)

I held Zachary Jay today. :-D

I drove around when we were doing errands today.

We had an awesome party last week--despite which fact I miss all the girls again.

Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday I had no free time.

Friday our PSAT scores came. We were about to go to bed, and I was like, "...have we checked the mail today?"
"...noooo...."
So I went out there in the FREEZING cold and got the mail and there were two big envelopes and I brought them inside. And then when we could open them, I sort of didn't. Just to let the suspense build nicely. Then, we opened them. Hannah looked at hers right away, and she did really well. Especially since she's going to take it 2 more times!! It's a very good base to build on. And then everyone was like, look at it!! And I was like, noooo!!! and then they were like, let us look at it!!! And I was like, nooo!!!--fine I'll look. Then I sort of started laughing and crying and hyperventilating, cuz I was really happy. I did way better on the math than I ever thought I could, (Math is NOT my strong point. at all.) so thanks for all your prayers. :-)

12. Score over 70 on two sections of the PSAT. (two guesses which two...)13. And since this is just for fun: Score over 65 on the remaining section. (This one comes under the "attempt" category.) *check*

And now I'll be babysitting for Kayla, Daniel and Tyler tonight, so I should keep moving. Seems like that's all we ever do. :-P

*deeep breaths* haha

call me, cuz I miss you guys...oh wait, we'll hang out all day tomorrow. and Gretchen, I'm totally getting around to e-mailing you one of these days. :-)

adios

I'm happy...(Je suis contente)

Today in French I learned how to say stuff like I am hungry (j'ai faim) and WE are tired (nous somme fatigues), instead of the girl is hungry, the men are tired, etc. I was very happy. :-P Those are the kind of things that make learning a new language interesting. (That and listening to James mangle it. haha. No, not "mange" it, languages aren't edible. :-)

onward ho then -->

arg!

No one's on! Quiero hablar! I want to talk to someone! :-( :-) (now brit's on:-)

We went to the Nutcracker today and saw our studly Jeremiah perform. yay Miah yay!

I realize every Sunday how much I miss those guys. And I don't just mean the guys, though they're a three ring circus in and of themselves. I miss everyone! But I got to teach Sunday School, which was about the only thing that could've cheered me up without making me cry first. :-) Being tired always makes me grouchy. Those kids are so sweet! I actually had a crowd today--4 preschoolers. :-P They're so cute.

Well, now that I actually have time to sit around and post, I can't think of that much to say. Figures. :-)

Luv you guys! press on! Have a good week! Talk to me so I won't miss everyone so much during the week! lol :-P

:-D

<3

quick post (they're all I ever seem to do)

I have five minutes to post while I wait for the water to warm up for my post-running shower. Hannah and Abby ran too, and we only have 2 showers. I'm sure you all really wanted to know that.

We had a terrific Thanskgiving--we hung out at home, slept in, watched the Macy's Parade and the dog show right afterwards, decorated for Christmas, and ate so much good food! And then last night we watched Phantom of the Opera, which was amazing! (The night before, we watched Cheaper by the Dozen 2, and a year and a night before, we watched HP4 for the first time as a surprise!) Today we're going to see Pirates 2, which is why this has to be a quick post because we don't want to be late! :-D

27. Do a really complicated Chem problem without messing up any significant figures.
On my last chem test, I only got one wrong and it was because I messed up the scientific notation in one of the conversions. So, I think I can cross that one off my list. :-D Yay!

Alright, I should get going, I hope to talk to each of you soon. And just to make sure, call me or e-mail me and that way it's guaranteed I'll talk to you soon. Or comment on our myspace. :-D

¡adios queridas!

*sigh*

I just finished reading The Sherwood Ring... *sigh* *mrs. darcy...* I officially love that book.

*mrs. darcy...*

*mrs. bingley...*

*mrs. ferrars...*

*mrs. brandon...*

*sigh*

*m r s . s h e r w o o d . . .*

really really quick post

50. Ooh! I know. Go to a Brown's game. :-D

We did that two Sundays ago...I think...haha...but we won!!! And it was really fun!!! And I understand football now!! At least the basics.

Life has been crazy. Let's see. Mom's birthday was last weekend. We didn't get her any presents (yet). :-( Dad's been really busy (really busy!) at work, hence no time to go shopping...and I can't drive yet. But we made her cards still. And Jason and Angie drove us to youth group, which was really nice.

And, my grandparents and Gretchen came over to celebrate. That was fun. :-D Pops spoiled us rotten and Meme did too--she made some AMAZING cake. Wow. We're still eating it. :-D And Pops took us ice skating to work it off--not before doing his part by getting Brownie Obsession at Fridays. I love food. :-D And it was really fun to have Gretchen over--we see her house every time we go to Meme and Pops' house, but she hadn't seen ours. :-D She's one of my "invisible" blog readers who reads it all the time but doesn't comment. :O)

So, life's pretty much been nutso. I'm learning a lot, but it's been nutso. (I shot peanut butter into that vein...crunchy peanut butter...it drove me nuts!--I love Ken Davis...borrow him from the church library. !!! after we're done with him. :-)

School. Dance. Youth group. Sleep.

I'm going to copy off of meg...meghannnnn...haha!!

desperate for changing
starving for truth
closer to where I started
chasing after you

I'm falling even more in love with you
letting go of all I've held onto
I'm standing here until you make me move
I'm hanging by a moment here with you

forgetting all I'm lacking
completely incomplete
I'll take your invitation
you take all of me now

I'm living for the only thing I know
I'm running and not quite sure where to go
and I don't know what I'm diving into
just hanging by a moment here with you

there's nothing else to lose
there's nothing else to find
there's nothing in the world
that could change my mind
there is nothing else
there is nothing else
there is nothing else

desperate for changing
starving for truth
closer to where I started
chasing after you

I'm falling even more in love with you
letting go of all I've held onto
I'm standing here until you make me move
I'm hanging by a moment here with you

this is pretty much all my life consists of at the moment. This post sums it up.

check out the new myspace: myspace.com/crazy_GEMs

new music video

What do you guys think? The only reason I put it on here is that it has some of THE most aMAZing scene changes ever. Watch it once, comment, and then when pretty much everyone has seen it I'll take it off again. :-P

the PSAT

It's what we've all been waiting for. I've prepared for it for 2 weeks. I took an at-home practice one last year. I took a not-counting PSAT last year. I took another at-home practice one 2 weeks ago. I did a full SAT section by section for the last week and a half. I cut Geometry, Current Events and Creative Expression to prepare for it. All leading up to this morning at 8:00.

How did it go?

HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO KNOW??? I WON'T GET MY SCORES FOR 2 MONTHS!!! ARRRGGG!!!

Ok, from what I do know, it went well. Thank you thank you to everyone who prayed for it! :-) Math was easier than I thought it would be, and critical reading was harder than I thought it'd be, and writing skills was fine. That's good, because I thought math was going to be horrible, critical reading was going to be EASY, and writing skills would be fine. So it all evened out in the end. I was getting tired by the time we got to writing skills; I actually changed two of my answers because I looked back over them and thought WHAT WAS I THINKING??

I can't believe the math was so easy. I think it must've been cuz I was taking a full SAT to prepare for it, which could be a little harder. I don't know. In case you all weren't aware of this, MATH IS NOT MY STRONG POINT. I'm much better with words. (hense I'm one of the only teenagers lfet in the world that pay lots of attenshun to grammer also spelling ;-)

It was fun to have Hannah with me to hash over things when we got home. "Did you answer ___ on that one about ___?" "Yeah, I got so confused on that one!!" "Oh that one was easy, I did this that and the other thing." "Good, that means I guessed right!" We're not Ron: "Hermione!! We decided we won't go over tests afterwards! It's bad enough to take it once..."

So, overall, I'm happy with the way things turned out. Unless I made some amazingly stupid errors on the math, when I thought I was being all smart, I did better on the math section than I've ever done. I just wish I would've known what "moratorium" and "excoriate" meant, because I know I got two critical reading questions wrong because of them. (Apparently a moratorium isn't something put into place during an interim, and excoriate isn't the opposite of explicit.) But if that's all I got wrong, #12 on my life list could be in the bag...we shall see.

All I can say is, December can't come soon enough...

...except for the fact that life is speeding by fast enough as it is.

so my friends just pretty much rock...

Stop right there.
That's exactly where I lost it.
See that line.
Well I never should have crossed it.
Stop right there.
Well I never should have said that
it's the very moment that
I wish that I could take back.

I'm sorry for the person I became.
I'm sorry that it took so long for me to change.
I'm ready to try and never become that way again
'cause who I am hates who I've been.
Who I am hates who I've been.

I couldn't face my life tomorrow
Without Your hope in my heart I know
I can't live a day without You
Lord, there's no night and there's no morning
Without Your loving arms to hold me
You're the heartbeat of all I do
I can't live a day without You

No I'm not who I was
When I took my first step
And I'm clinging to the promise
you're not through with me yet
So if all of these trials
Bring me closer to you
Then I will go through the fire
If you want me to

It may not be the way I would have chosen
When you lead me through a world
That's not my home
But you never said it would be easy
You only said I'll never go alone

triple post

hello this is abby impersonating katie don't be fooled by my lack of capital letters and misspellings and run on sentences.

and this is Katie, telling her how to spell this right and supervising her every keystroke. :-P

Y'all are so....weird...Tchyah...can't you guess who this is???lol. Tchyah...

we should really do something productive, guys.

like GET A MYSPACE we need to ask dad and then all three of us might share it and stuff

just so that we could get into all of YOUR myspaces.

We want to see how ...weird...you are... goofy goofy ppl... haha...

plus, apparently everyone spills their guts on their myspaces, so you can find out useful information like the fact that KEVIN is dating, which I just found out on Sunday and apparently it's been like, 2 months. :-P

Katie is sitting on my legs and needs to moooooooooooove OH NO THE EVIL COW HAS TAKEN OVER


help!!!!

Haha....FOOD IS ON THE WAY...aka muffins....

what are you talking about WE'RE THE FOOD THE EVIL COWS WILL DEVOUR US AND TURN US INTO LIFE MILK...

sEize thE Day

c u z t o m o R R o w i T ' l l b e g o n E

Youth group last night

#49. Do something crazy.

I think I've got that one covered.

Last night we played kick the can, always an amazing event. I was running away from IT. I can't even remember who IT was. I ran into the women's bathroom (because IT was a boy). Or tried to. The door got stuck (did I even turn the handle?) and I went crashing through it. Let's just say it's a good thing the fall work day is coming up. They're going to have to repair the doorframe. :-D I thought I was going to have a giant bruise on my face, cuz I kind of ran into the door with my cheek, but nothing yet! It looked all red so I fell asleep with ice on it, but today it's just a little sore. No fireworks yet.

That was #49a, do something crazy accidentally. This is #49b, I also climbed through the Impact room window. The guys put a chair down and a bunch of us girls climbed in. It was fun.

Now all I have to do is

52. Do something just plain weird, on purpose, in public. (besides scatting halfway around the neighborhood last week with Dad and Hannah.)

I could tell you more stories. And I will, someday, but right now I have some catching up to do with Meg. She hasn't heard all this. :-D