?M: In Which She Answers Several Random Questions and Says "Cheese"

Kiki asked me what do I eat in the kitchen that I don't let my kids see- Most frequently, this is it. I go through phases. Sometimes they last for months, or days, whatever the mood strikes. Right now, this is my favorite secret snack. Sharp cheddar cheese with honey drizzled on top. It's incredible. This is great cheese.
Lara asked how I have time to blog. I write blogs when I feel inspired, so it's easy to write them. I love that my blog is such an expression of who I am, who we are as a family, and celebrates the things that are most precious, simple and enjoyed in our lives. I also have made many priceless friendships this way, and I'm very thankful for each one.

American Mum and Amanda, I will be 27 next month. And, I'm not from MN, I'm from SD, and we live in SD now, but, Jim grew up in MN, about an hour and a half from here. I grew up 45 minutes from here, so this is a wonderful middle ground for our families, and it's a fantastic city. If we could have chosen anywhere in the world to live, it would have been here. It's a great city, large enough for all we want, but still a lovely midwestern smaller city, and close to Omaha and Minneapolis, for all the bigger city extras you want, without having to live in one! Oh, and Amanda, Sonic's pineapple shake is that good. Just don't check the sugar content. It's a little less good after that...

Lisa, we both went to South Dakota State University, where Jim graduated with honors with an engineering degree, and I mostly half-read about 300,000 books and wrote twice as many papers in pursuit of an English degree.

Oh, and Lisa, you asked what I'd do with $10,000 if I couldn't save it? The first thing I thought of was give it away, so I suppose I'll keep that answer? If that wasn't an option, I'm sure I'd find another way to use it :).

Ris and Lisa, we attend a Wesleyan church. We've attended one in the last four places we've lived, and they are all in the same district, so we know a ton of people in the network, which is wonderful when there is a big event like Family Camp or retreats etc. We would go anywhere we felt led, but so far, we've been a part of these churches. And this year, we'll be joining some friends of ours in planting a new church here in Sioux Falls, which is very exciting. I'm sure I'll say more about that some other time.

Lauren and Anne, I worked at Wal Mart in college. Talk about character-building. And one thing I take away from it to share with you all who've never worked retail: If you have ever decided you didn't want something and threw it in a random shelf in the store, shame. on. you. If you don't want to take it back to it's right spot, you can give it to the cashier when you check out and they will gladly give it to the right department to put it back for you. Amen?