We've been tagged- I knew it would happen eventually!

We were "tagged" by one of our friends, and now must share 10 interesting things about myself.

Here are the rules: You have to tag 5 people and you can't tag the person that tagged you. You leave them a comment on their blog letting them know you are tagging them and why. Also, direct them to your blog for instructions. It is also asked that you notify the tagger when you post your list so that they can enjoy reading the responses.

Here are the 10 somewhat interesting facts about us:
1. Our first date was Friday the 13th, in February. We got engaged Friday the 13th, in March. We were married Friday the 13th, in November. (Yes, all in the same year.)
2. We went to the same high school, were in some of the same classes, and had mutual friends but we never met until after college.
3. We enjoy making up songs about practically anything. John has an awesome potty jingle for those of you potty training. *Warning* It has the word poop in it.
4. Dottie originally didn't want to date me because 1) I'm not 6 feet tall, and 2) she thought I didn't like kids. (I thought that because that is what he told me.)
5. We only have 1 argument that we both distinctly remember. (By the ways guys- if you go off with a friend for a weekend hiking trip, go ahead and call your wife when you are on your way home. If by chance you don't take my advice and call- when she FINALLY gets a hold of you and asks why you didn't call DO NOT SAY "But if I had called it would have been like my vacation was over."
6. Dottie is an only child and was an only grandchild until she was 18.
7. We have a goal to visit all of our country's national parks. In fact, our children think that all vacations involve looking at rocks, trees, and cannons.
8. Dottie must take a nap every Sunday afternoon even though she knows that means she won't be able to sleep Sunday night.
9. John, who is only 5'6 has one trophy- and it's for basketball.
10. John's all time favorite show is The Andy Griffith Show. We own them all and he quotes them often.

We are tagging Kari, Candy, Susan, Jenn, and Jerbo- sorry if you guys have been tagged before!

Old Age, Old Times, and Typewriters

Well, last Saturday I (John) marked another year of living. Yesterday (March 13th) marked the 10 year anniversary of mine and Dottie's engagement. Such milestones in and of themselves can make one feel a little old. But just to make sure that I really felt old I also had the privilege the past couple of weeks to re-connect with my 6th grade teacher who is famous in my family for being my "favorite" teacher ever (you can read more about this on my blog which is http://revraymer.blogspot.com/). In doing this I realized that more than 20 years has passed since being in 6th grade. 20 years is a long time isn't it? Well, then just today my son comes to me and says, "Dad, what are those old typing machines called that you actually put a piece of paper in and the bar moves across the top?" Yes, my son thinks typewriters are antiques.

Oh, the times they are a changing and I'm just getting old.

Amharic Phrases

Here is a YouTube video that gives some basic common phrases in Amharic. Some of the phrases I believe are only useful in ras tafari religious context but others are common phrases such, "Good morning".

Conference Call and Waiting

We had our first conference call with our agency. It was great for everyone to get questions answered all at once. We learned that in April there will be a "Waiting Children" list that people will be able to look at. We're excited about that.

We finally made a purchase for our future children. We have really wanted to shop for them but not knowing their sex or age has made that quite difficult. Anyways, we were in Wally World and they had electric blankets on clearance for $3. Can you believe it?! $3.00?!? So all the kids got new electric blankets.

I have also been working at cleaning out the current guest room. We figure that no matter what age or sex the new children will be, this room will be used by some child. (Sorry grandparents their is no more room at this inn.) It's amazing how much stuff you can store in a room that only gets used by visiting grandparents. Now I have to figure out what to do with all this stuff. I'm thinking Goodwill is about to get a whole lot of new inventory.

Going now to continue celebrating my birthday week.