Not Such a Star Pitcher

I have never wanted to be a ballerina.

I have never wanted to be a doctor.

And I definitely never wanted to be a baseball player!

However, last night BECAUSE of the job I DO have (and love) I was able to "be" a baseball pitcher for just a moment.

I was at a meeting in Louisville, Ky. (I heart this city) and our evening activity was a night at the Louisville Bats baseball game. Our group had the opportunity to throw out the first pitch...well we were one of seven groups with folks throwing out the first pitch!

I stepped out of the room when they were deciding who would throw that pitch...when I came back in I found out that I was nominated...much to my horror because I DO throw like a girl!

Here I am warming up...

Here's the mascot...it's really a bat and not a baseball bat.

Here's the group that I was throwing with...I'm sad to say that even the mascots had a more accurate pitch than I did. I DID throw a bit better than the little girl in pink below!

"Oh what am I doing up here?" That's what was going through my head...luckily the stands were not full but I did have a loud cheering section in my soybean farmer-friends.

Before I pitched, the announcer read a nice piece on what Indiana soybean farmers are doing as a group to better their industry and the soybeans they raise so at least the crowd got some education with their entertainment.

The wind-up...

We got our baseballs back as we filed past homeplate...I knew this one was mine because you can see the dirt marks and yes, my pitch DID bounce before it got to homeplate!

It was a fun time but I have to admit I was nervous and would have NEVER chosen to put myself out in front of that many people to throw a baseball. I guess it's important for all of us to put ourselves in positions that make us uncomfortable and help us grow.

Hopefully, I never go to a football game and have the opportunity to kick a field goal! Horror!

Oh Technology, Please Slow Down

I never feel my age as much as when I think about how technology has changed in just my 30 or so years on this earth.

I'm not saying that I didn't have indoor plumbing or color television when I was young, but we did have a console television with NO remote and a dishwasher that we had to roll over to the sink and hook up to the faucet.

Source: us.mg6.mail.yahoo.com via Cora on Pinterest

Our television looked much like the one above but I don't think my mom thought of re-purposing our old one like they did!

Now, I'm also not saying that I've seen technology change as much as other generations. My grandpa farmed with horses when he was younger and then switched to tractors...can you imagine that transition? (I had a great photo of Grandpa and my Uncle Larry in a farm wagon pulled by horses but could I find it...no!)

But the technology in my lifetime has changed - especially in cellphones.

I'm looking to move from a Blackberry to a iPhone or Android and just can't decide. This got me thinking about my first cellphone...

I was telling a coworker about my first "cell phone" which I got as a perk of an internship between by sophomore and junior years in college.

It wasn't a cute flip phone and DEFINITELY not a smartphone.

It was one of these...

Source: en.wikipedia.org via Jennifer on Pinterest

I call it a "bag phone." It plugged into the cigarette lighter in my truck.

I LOVED it! Such freedom. If only I knew what was coming...

So, what do you think cell phones will look like in another 5 years?

I can only imagine!

Plugging Back In

I actually did it.

I didn't turn on my laptop or my iPad for two whole days.

I will admit to checking email, Twitter and Facebook on my Blackberry but I'm talking no more than two minutes at a time.

I think that's is the longest I've been unplugged for months...maybe longer.

Wow...it wasn't as hard as I thought it would be and I am feeling a bit more energized and ready to get back in the groove of things again.

Well, maybe it was the two unplugged days OR maybe it was the five naps I've taken in the last three days.

Whatever works, right?

Celebrating Mom

It's my mom's birthday and I just have one thing to say...

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My Dream Guy has to Like Rudolph

Let me re-create a very serious conversation I had with a co-worker today. It will help explain the title of this post.

Coworker: You don't really want to get married, do you?

Me:  Not really. I'm pretty set in my ways. Well...he will have to be pretty special for me to consider it.

Coworker: He'll really have to like Rudolph, huh?

Source: google.com via Megan on Pinterest

Me:  I guess so (with a puzzled look on my face).

Coworker:  Sorry, I couldn't resist!

Me:  Wait a minute...don't make fun of my nose! I know it's red but I can't help it and it hurts.

Coworker: Ha, Ha, Ha...and his name will have to be Yukon Cornelius!

Me: And our date will be to the Island of the Misfit Toys!

Source: bing.com via Megan on Pinterest

Together singing: We're on the Island of Misfit Toys...


I love my coworkers...even when they make fun of my red nose!

Afternoon with the Three Stooges

Well, they aren't the original Stooges but it's close...

These three crazy guys are my nephews.

They are brothers. They are loud. They are messy. They are silly.

I love them to pieces.

I recently spent a few hours at our great Indiana State Fair with them and their mama (my older sister).

I'm a big believer in enjoying all of the great programming that the fair offers for FREE or close to free.

The boys LOVE the DNR building with the fish pond, park rangers and the target shooting. Conservation officers man a great demo on gun safety for the young and old. These two gun crazy boys (can't all boys turn ANYTHING into a gun?) enjoyed it.

 I had a very nice lady ask me of these two were twins...the one in front is 6 and the one in back is 4!

We also checked out the poultry barn which has a great area in the front that showcases the different breeds of rabbits and poultry. Here's a Flemish Giant, I think.

NOTE: Probably not the best food safety to have the kid eating a sucker while his elbow is very close to rabbit poo...oh well, we hit the hand wash station soon after this, I promise.

One activity that my sister did fork out some cash for is an elephant ride for the boys and a couple of their friends who joined us at the fair. The four in the back are my crew...notice someone missing?

My sister bought all three boys a ticket and when the red-head got to the top of the stairs he chickened out. This is not unusual for the kids...he's a bit of a scaredy-cat.

The funny part of the story was that we were giving him a hard time for not writing and making his mom buy a ticket when the nice man selling the tickets graciously gave my sister her money back for the unused ticket.

After my nephew saw his brothers and friends enjoying themselves on top of the elephant, he convinced his mom to buy yet another ticket for him to ride the elephant.

This time he didn't get within 10 feet of the STAIRS before he chickened out. My sister cajoled. She tried to push him towards the stairs but he was NOT having it.

Luckily, the nice man refunded my sister her money for a second time.

Just another day with my very own three stooges!

Random Posting State Fair Style

I may have mentioned it a time or two here but if I haven't...then let me say it again...I've been consumed with the Year of Soybeans at the Indiana State Fair this summer.

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It's been a great experience and there's still five days to go! So if you live in Indiana (or close by), come on out and see me!

However, I've been a bit scattered in my everyday life lately so I haven't been posting as often as I'd like and there is so much I've been wanting to say on here...so let's go.

It's another round of RANDOM POSTING!!

1.  I woke up this morning and immediately reached for a green shirt and then realized that I did NOT have to wear a green shirt today. Let me explain a bit...as part of the Year of Soybeans, we have these great "Bean Team" T-shirts that we wear at the fair. They are green. 

We also have a very cute "Bean There, Done That" T-shirt that is for sale in the fair gift shop. Guess what? It's GREEN too!

Don't get me wrong, I love green but when you wear the same shirt day after day, it gets old. Guess I now know what it would be like to wear a uniform to work!

2.  I've been growing my hair out for a while now. For the last two weeks, I thought I had been using conditioner when I actually had been using shampoo. Yes, I would shampoo my hair and then pick up another container of shampoo thinking it was conditioner and shampoo my hair again. NEVER realizing that conditioner doesn't suds up like shampoo. YIKES, no wonder my hair has been so ratty after my shower!

3.  Do you ever fill guilty when you don't go to your regular morning coffee place? I do, but then I eat my donut and drink my iced coffee with cream and mocha and I get over it. I'll go back to my peppermint mocha tomorrow.

4.  I've discovered something over the last 12 days...I'm not cut out for manual labor.  Earlier today, I counted no fewer than 12 bruises on my arms and legs from moving boxes from one end of the fairgrounds to the other. Crazy! I think I need some of these...

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Thanks for joining me for another round of random posting!

It Started with Such Promise

Saturday started with such promise. 

A beautiful morning with a bit of nip in the air.

A dozen hot air balloons lifting off into the sky from the infield of the Indiana State Fair.

That feeling of hope and promise was diminished after Saturday night's awful tragedy but it is not gone, just dampened.

What I've Been Up To

The Indiana State Fair started August 5.

I've been there every day except today...and I'll be there until it ends August 21.

Here are a few photos from yesterday when my oldest nephew went with me to "help" me.

I love $2 Tuesdays and I love elephant ears. Put them together and you have perfection!

Yes, that's Lucas Oil Stadium made from Legos!

After a lemon shake-up, a quarter of an elephant ear AND a corn dog, he still had room for a deep fried Klondike bar!

My nephew is a lucky guy...as soon as we stepped foot on the fairgrounds the nice Cheese Lady gave him some free Midway ride tickets!

At the end of the day, it was easy to be green...green hat, green shirt, green bag! We said good-bye to Bennie the Bean (a soybean, that is) with the promise to return.

Source: in.gov via Megan on Pinterest

Riding Shotgun

Who hasn't called their dad at 11 a.m. on a Tuesday and asked him for a bucket of soybeans?

You have NEVER done that, really?

Hmm...I have to admit that I've done it more than once and he ALWAYS comes through for me. 

That's just the kind of dad that he is. 

He even put up signs in his soybean fields JUST because I asked him to.

He's the best! He even loaded the bucket of soybeans into my car last night.

Doesn't everyone have a bucket of soybeans riding shotgun in their front seat?

You've NEVER had a bucket of soybeans in your car, huh? Go figure!

Want to see these incredible beans in person? You can!

Year of Soybeans at the Indiana State Fair starts on Friday and you can find the soybeans in the bucket above at the Incredible Soybean Exhibit in the Pioneer Our Land Pavilion! Check out the Indiana State Fair page for more details about SOYBEANS at the Fair.

Want to win some tickets to the Fair? Check out Indiana's Family of Farmers blog and Bennie the Bean's FB page (starting Wednesday) or his Twitter page (@BennietheBean).

I'm thinking about seeing if the bag of sweet corn in my garage wants to take a ride tomorrow...

GP Winner Revealed

Wow, y'all really wanted to win this cookbook!

I am so excited about the response and want to thank all of you who tried to win.

Check out all 10 recipes I made from Christmas Kitchens here.

Before I announce the winner, I want to thank Gooseberry Patch and the Real Farmwives of America for hosting the In the Kitchen series.

And the winner of the cookbook is...

Congratulations Lillian! I'll be contacting you soon through email.

Special thanks to Gooseberry Patch for providing me with this great cookbook to try and share with you. If you would like to purchase this or other cookbooks, please visit their store. If you would like to see other great recipes, check out www.realfarmwivesofamerica.com.

Decorating the Garden

When I got a very cool round floor planter from Avant Garden Decor  in the mail a few weeks ago, I immediately knew what I had to do with it.

My little outside space just didn't do it justice...

I'm the only one who really ever sees this space and while I do try to keep some living plants (I'm down at least 4 this year), I just wanted better for my new planter.

I knew where it had to go...

My mom has a beautiful yard with several special places where she has wonderful landscaping that is inviting to people, butterflies and birds!

So, I took the planter to her and she decided it needed to go right outside the front door...you see we are country folk so the front door stoop is just for looks, everyone knows to come on in the back door!

Isn't it pretty? I can't wait to see how she changes it up each year.

This week the Real Farmwives of America and Friends have teamed up with Perky Pet Feeders to give away a Hummingbird Feeder!

If you would like to win a Hummingbird Feeder, please head over to the Real Farmwives of America & Friends Blog and sign up for the giveaway!  


Avant Garden Decor did provide me with this product to review, however the thoughts and opinions shared about this product on this blog are my own, of course!