ten on tuesday (the we've reinstituted the no shoes in the house rule edition)

1. It seems like I'm lagging in blog posts as of late since the last five or so have been Ten on Tuesdays. Well, you know, it's October, it's raining, and there's not really all that much to say.

2. I opted to go with the soup and salad for our first small group. Thank you, all six of you, for voting. Made a batch of my chicken tortellini soup and a pot of chili. For dessert I dug out the Mennonite recipe for Apple Goodie. It's really just apple crisp, but with a Mennonitish name. My mom got it from one of her Mennonite friends, an old neighbor that she's kept in contact with since I was in kindergarten. It was all good. And there were leftovers - which means packing lunch just got a whole lot easier.

3. We spent the entire weekend cleaning. Not that we live our lives entirely as dirty people, but it's been six months since we've moved in and things just needed to be deep cleaned. Rented a Rug Doctor and shampooed the carpets, and now they look almost white again - just like they're supposed to. We got a little lax in that whole taking off the shoes thing, but now, we're back in business. Cleaned the windows, cleaned the faux wood blinds (sounds fancy, doesn't it?), cleaned the siding on the front of the house. Don't worry, my husband will get to the other three sides. . . eventually. Trimmed the bushes, dusted every single thing that could be dusted. Did all the laundry. Decorated for fall. I wanted new fall candles for the piano, but I was too cheap to spend $5.99 a piece for them at Fred Meyer. So remember those mini pumpkins I got??? Ya, they came in handy.

4. Monday was picture day. One of my least favorite days of the school year. It always cracks me up when little girls get those stupid free combs and start combing their hair and then their hair turns to complete static just in time for the pictures. In 30 years from now they'll be looking back at their picture and wondering what on earth was going on with their hair. (Tell me that hasn't happened to you before.) I wore brown. Maybe it will make my eyes pop. Unless I smiled too big and then they get all squinty on me. One of my college roommates (hello, Melissa!) used to call me the blonde Korean because when I smile my eyes disappear. It's weird and I don't know why it happens. You should know, however, that genetically I'm all caucasian.

5. Speaking of college roommates, I discovered this file folder the other day full of quotes I kept from my roommates while at the Word of Life Bridal Bible Institute. Ya, I need to get a copy of that and send it out to you guys. Here's an oldy but a goodie, "With every step you take, our beds shake! And that's no lie." The four of us would say that, rather loudly, in complete unison. You see, internet, the girls above us in Europe Upper were not at all very considerate of the noise level that came from their feet. Not to mention the vibrations in the paper thin floors that those same feet caused. I don't think I was able to nap properly for the entire year I was there.

6. If that whole cross off the word thing in #5 actually works, I'd like to thank google for having such an amazing search engine.

7. I really hate driving on the I-205 bridge when it's windy.

8. I tried to check out about 30 books at the library today, and the self-checkout machines wouldn't let me. It said on the screen, "Unable to process your request. Please see a librarian about your account." I should've known my fine was too big. It was $31. Please don't judge me. I check out those books for the children. I just don't always get them returned in a timely manner. And when you check out like 30 at a time, fines add up faster. But the kids in my class always come out readers!!! And that's what matters, right?

9. Can I save those library fine receipts for tax purposes? There should be some way I can write that off, isn't there? Where's Jamie Powers when I need him??? For those of you who don't know, J.P. is the most incredible tax guy ever. He did my taxes on April 14th for like 8 or 9 years before I got married. For free! He's also married to one of my best friends. It's nice having connections with somebody who has Turbo Tax and a high speed internet connection.

10. Our women's Bible study got started this week. We're doing Beth Moore's Esther, It's Hard Being a Woman. I've already used that line on Phil at least once this week. I'm sure he'll hear it more as time goes by. So now I have homework. Better get on that.

BONUS (aren't you lucky?): They caught the River Rat. The idiot actually thought he could rob banks and check cashing places in Oregon and Washington (both sides of the Columbia River, thus the name River Rat) and not get caught. Hello!?! Don't you know they have really good surveillance systems now and that your perfectly good picture would be plastered all over the news? Or that in your stupidity you'd leave a fingerprint behind? Didn't you know the FBI was involved? Ignorant.