Christmas Visit

Chet and Valerie came and visited again over Christmas. It was great having them here as always, it was such a fun and relaxing time. Chet is always so helpful when he comes to visit. They left on Monday and I had to work that night, so I stayed in bed til late. And while I was sleeping, he cleaned the bathroom, took down my Christmas lights and hung up this Cafe sign my mom gave me in the kitchen. It was such a treat, I have never been around someone who is always so willing to help. Its quite a treat! My family just loves having them around which is great as well. When Val is in town, Macie is her best bud. She loves to go where ever Macie goes. Its just fun to have them around, its just happy times. I feel as though we are in a way, playing "house." Its like I get to see what its like to be married and have a child for a few days. And the thing is, I love it, and can't wait to have it. Someday I say....someday!

Say what?

So I am at work tonight, and I had made myself a hot chocolate and brought it to the desk. One of my coworkers Monica loves to constantly harrass me about being Mormon. She knows a guy that works in security that considers himself a "jack-mormon" and she has since decided that every Mormon must indeed be of of these. She is insistant that I am out getting drunk every weekend and sleeping around as every "normal" person is, dispite what I tell her. But anywho, I digress.
So I bring this hot chocolate to the desk and she goes "Are you allowed to have that?" I was all, hot chocolate? Of course I am. And she goes "oh yeah its because you are one of those...one of those...whats it called?" Knowing full well she was going to yet again call me a "jack-mormon" I just decided to tell her the word so the teasing could begin. But much to my surprise I didn't tell her "jack-mormon" I somehow said "Jack-ass mormon." LOL I turned about 20 shades of red the second it came out of my mouth, I am not sure why that was what came out. A little miscommunication between my mouth and my brain. But now I will never hear the end of it. Monica just loves telling anyone who will listen that I am now a "jack-ass mormon." STUPID MOUTH! : x

License to Parent

Working in the field that I work in, I have a lot of experience with parents. I mean why wouldn't I, I take care of kids, and consequently with kids comes parents....well in most cases. In my years working in the hospital I have come in contact with tons of parents. Young parents, old parents, good parents and some really really terrible parents.
Older parents, when it comes to being a parent for the first time, can be very bad in and of himself. They are clueless, they freak about EVERYTHING! We had a first time mom who had to be in her mid thirties and she brought her 3 day old baby in because she was lethargic. She said all she did was slept. I tried to explain to her that newborns do sleep all the time. That they probably sleep upwards of 21 hours a day. But she claimed that the first two days of her life, in the hospital she was awake a lot more, but now all she did was sleep. She also thought her baby was having seizures because her baby would sometimes shudder when she was sleeping. I tried to explain to her that it was a normal to do while sleeping. But sadly when you go into an ER claiming your newborn is lethargic and having seizures, they have to run test after test and put the baby on antibiotics for at least 48 hours to make sure the baby hadn't become septic somehow.
And then we have the extremely young parents. Children having children. Right now we have a 4 1/2 month old who's mom is 15 and the dad is 13! Mind you, in case you hadn't already done the math, subtract the 9 months of pregnancy and the baby age, that makes the dad at the most 12 years old when the baby was conceived. The baby has been in the hospital for over 3 weeks and since he was on a ventilator he has developed a difficult time eating. At this point he is almost ready to go home, all we have to do is get him to eat 3oz every 3 hours. Seems fairly easy, but its not. The child has developed an aversion to food and when the mom is only 15, she is not too willing to work with the kid. Especially when the feedings interfere with her sleep. My opinion, not that it matters, is you have no place becoming a mom when you are still wearing Hannah Montana shirts.
I have learned a lot from my job and my interactions with those around me. I have learned a lot of dos and don'ts in my job. Its amazing the things I see while I work. Lots of sad stories and situations. The hard part is that they don't require a license to become a parent. And when poor parents have kids its the kids who suffer. Its hard stuff to see.

Christmas Morning

This year I had to work at the hospital on Christmas Eve. Im usually stuck working that or Christmas day, that is just the way it works in a hospital. So I started getting text messages at 715am from Amy, she was anxious to open her Christmas presents and wanted to know when I would be home. She doesn't quit understanding nursing and that you don't get to go home the second the clock strikes 7am and my "shift ends." So I got home at 8am and then it was rounding everyone up and convincing my mom to get out of bed, cause she had had a late night. We all hit the jackpot as usual for christmas. My mom always spoils us rotten. I was able to snap a few pictures of our oh so early faces. I thought I would share with anyone reading.

Macie starting to take out the contents of her stocking, boy she looks tired!

Amy got a skirt in her stocking

David reaching into his stocking. Daisy wanted to be involved in all the action but she just got in everyones way!

Dad cheesin it, half asleep too!

Amy sitting on "santas" lap

This is how Cooper cuddles with me early in the morning

Wherever the presents were, so was Daisy

Everyone just starting opening them at once

Even Grandma came out to join the the festivities

London kept watch over the presents

Daisy finally settled down under my moms feet out of the way

That thing called life

I try to take one day at a time, but sometimes several days attack me at once. ~Jennifer Yane

Tension is who you think you should be. Relaxation is who you are. ~Chinese Proverb

This past week I have been under an intense amount of stress. I don't like this. Stress is something I try to avoid at all costs. Some people would say its the "holidays." Though the holidays can be a stressful time, I can't put all the blame on that. My job is most definitely a large source of stress for me. It always is this time of year. We are busy, VERY busy this time of year! Its respiratory season, which means tons of patients with RVS, Asthma and Pneumonia and a lot of times a combination of 2. We have some extremely sick kiddos and a large portion of the kids are under a month old. As a nurse we are taught that "air goes in and out, blood goes round and round and anything different is something to worry about. As difficult as it seems this whole air going in and out thing is sometimes a really HARD thing for these kids. Especially the little babies with RSV. Some nights its like I can never get a break because im constantly running from room to room because all my patients are dropping in their oxygen saturation. Its hard work!
And sadly my job is not my only stressor right now. I have had a lot of stressors in my dealings with others. I have the unanswered questions of the future, the dealings with unhappy friends. And I do try and do as the quote I have posted says and take life one day at a time. But there are just those times when life takes u by storm and you are knocked off your feet before you know it. I need a break. I need a time out from my brain. I just want to check out for a while til the stress subsides. Is that really possible?

10 points to ponder for 2009

Number 10 Life is sexually transmitted.

Number 9 Good health is merely the slowest possible rate at which one can die.

Number 8 Men have two emotions: Hungry and Horny. If you see him without an erection, make him a sandwich.

Number 7 Give a person a fish and you feed them for a day;teach a Person to use the internet and they won't bother you for weeks.

Number 6 Some people are like a Slinky.....not really good for anything but you still can't help but smile when you shove them down the stairs.

Number 5 Health nuts are going to feel stupid someday, lying in hospitals dying of nothing.

Number 4 All of us could take a lesson from the weather. It pays no attention to criticism.

Number 3Why does a slight tax increase cost you two hundred dollars and a substantial tax cut saves you thirty cents?

Number 2 In the 60s, people took acid to make the world weird. Now the world is weird and people take Prozac to make it normal.

AND THE NUMBER 1 THOUGHT FOR 2009!We knew exactly where the one cow with mad cow disease was located among the millions and millions of cows in America but we still haven't got a clue as to where tens of thousands of illegal immigrants and terrorists are located.We should put the Department of Agriculture in charge of immigration

Gotta love Madlibs!

Dear Santa,

I have been a good Girl.

It really wasn't my fault what happened at Holly's Christmas party. It was Chet who spiked the punch with too much Pepsi. I can't help it if I drank 6 glasses. It was so good---smelled and tasted just like Perfume.

I thought it was funny when I put Monica's T-shirt on my head and danced the Polka on the Couch while singing `"Just Dance"'. I didn't mean to break Holly's I-pod and don't know why Holly would sue me for Drive by shooting.

I don't remember calling Jon's wife a Beautiful Horse---even though she looked like one with Purple eye shadow and Green lipstick!

And when I threw up on Jenny's husband's Nose, it was only because I ate too much of that Fried Rice.

After all that fun, I admit I was a little tired. So I fell asleep on my way home and drove my Hummer through my neighbor's Roof. I don't think that was any reason for my neighbor to call me a Tan Cat and have me arrested for Murder!

So, Santa...here I sit in my jail cell on Christmas Eve, all Kind and Quiet. And I'm really not to blame for any of this Lazy stuff. Please bring me what I want the most---bail money!

Sincerely and Poorly yours,
Rachel (Really a nice Girl!)

P.S. It's only 2 bucks!

Tis the Season

For those of you who don't follow Natalie's blogs, there was a blog she wrote called An Open Letter to Mr and/or Mrs Grouchy-Pants. While the humor found in this blog was very typical Natalie aka Snarkie Belle, it has been something that has been on my mind a lot the last few weeks. I am not usually one that likes to get into the hustle and bustle of "the season." I love to gift gifts to those I care about, so its a great excuse to do that, but what I don't care about is the constant music starting after Halloween, and the crowds, oh how I hate the crowds!!!
I needed to do some grocery shopping tonight. I tried to go to Kroger first, my mom tried to tell me it would be cheaper than Walmart plus I figured there would be less crowds. But after picking up 5 things and finding every single one of them more expensive, I decided to make my way to Walmart. I didn't even try to find a close parking spot, I knew there was no use. Needless to say, Walmart was pure chayos. It took me close to an hour to make my way up and down the food isles. Don't get me wrong, I did it with a smile and said hi to people as I passed by, but it wasn't easy. At one point, when I was in line and then I realized I forgot something, I knew it was going to delay me a great deal, I tried singing Christmas songs to myself. That is so not typical me, but I wanted to stay happy and not let this madness get me down. I did not want to be Ms Grouchy-pants! So I made it out alive, and everyone lived to see another day. Now hopefully I can avoid that "fun time" againt til after Christmas. But u had better believe, I will do it all again once Christmas is over. I need a good crazy sale to cheer me up. TIS THE SEASON!!!

Selfish vs Selfless

Selfishness is not living as one wishes to live, it is asking others to live as one wishes to live.
- Oscar Wilde

Know the difference between ...

Your love for you - selfish love
and
other's love for you - selfless love

Have you ever realize or experience that ...

If someone ELSE cooks or bakes FOR you - that will usually taste much better than if you would prepare the very same food yourself FOR you !?

Or if someone else GIVES you a gentle loving massage - it feels much different / better than if you would give yourself a massage ?!

Or that someone ELSE singing FOR you is more pleasant to listen to than if YOU would listen to tapes from YOUR very own songs !!

If and as long as you are busy loving or caring for yourself ...

- no one else can care for you because you are fully occupied with your own love

Hence if and as long as YOU are busy caring FOR you and busy WITH you - you are occupied and thus no one else can give any love TO you !! A human being in a certain way behaves and acts like a container - there is ONE amount or quantity of love in total "fitting into" or having "place" inside you - your love OR other's people's love OR much of your love and little love from other's ...

the sum of BOTH equals 100% ... but ...

If you are fully busy caring and loving others
- then you are free to fully absorb and enjoy all the savory love from others

Love is not...

Critical Shaming Abusive Controlling Manipulative

Demeaning Humiliating Separating Discounting

Diminishing Belittling Negative Traumatic

Painful most of the time etc.

All I Need to Know about Life I Learned from My Dog

• If you stare at someone long enough, eventually you'll get what you want.
• If at first you don't succeed, beg.
• Don't go out without I.D.
• Be direct with people; let them know exactly how you feel by peeing on their shoes.
• Be aware of when to hold your tongue, and when to use it.
• Leave room in your schedule for a good nap.
• Always give people a friendly greeting.
• When you do something wrong, always take responsibility for it (as soon as you're dragged out from under the bed).
• If it's not wet and sloppy, it's not a real kiss.

• Never pass up the opportunity to go for a joyride.
• Allow the experience of fresh air and the wind in your face to be pure ecstasy.
• When loved ones come home, always run to greet them.
• When it's in your best interest, practice obedience.
• Let others know when they've invaded your territory.
• Take naps and stretch before rising.
• Run, romp and play daily.
• Eat with gusto and enthusiasm.
• Be loyal.
• Never pretend to be something you're not.
• If what you want lies buried, dig until you find it.
• When someone is having a bad day, be silent, sit close by and nuzzle them gently.
• Thrive on attention and let people touch you.
• Avoid biting when a simple growl will do.
• On hot days, drink lots of water and lay under a shady tree.
• When you're happy, dance around and wag your entire body.
• No matter how often you're scolded, don't buy into the guilt thing and pout...run right back and make friends.
• Delight in the simple joy of a long walk.

What I want to know...

10. Why are all the tv and radio commercials on at the same time? I change the channel to escape one commercial just to find that every single other channel is also having a commercial. And while im on the topic of commertials, whats up with late night commertials? All i hear about is losing weight and male enhancement. Im tired of it!!!

9. Why are all the best parking spaces reserved for the handicapped? And, they don't even use all them. They are always empty, well except at walmart, then 90% of their clientele is usin them. I don't mind if you have the spaces, but can you share every now and then when Im in a hurry? When im not, I promise to park in the very back!

8. Why do the big corporations elicit young children into going door to door selling their useless crap? Who can say "no" to a child? That is extortion.

7. Why are computers so stubborn and inflexible? It's always their way or no way at all.

6. Why can't I pay my credit card with my credit card?

5. Why is it that all the good food is bad for your body. Ice cream, french fries...etc

4. Why is it that only women have their periods. Why can't men have their periods too!

3. Why did God give all the crazy people in the Middle East all the oil?

2. Why do people always like to talk about their bowel movements? My friend called me the other day and told me his poop was green! I wanted to pat him on the back and say "good job little buddy!"

1. Why doesn't life have a spell check? I KNOW I'M A SUCKY SPELLER! But if you can't laugh at me, who will?

Playing Dress-Up

Out Enjoying the Festival of Lights

Don't fall for this

In times of a bad economy it seems that more and more people get into the fraud business. Most of us would not fall for this crap, but sadly there are people who are falling for it, and my coworker was one of those sad folks. She was selling a wedding dress on craigslist. She had someone who was interested in buying it, they went back and forth with several several emails. And he finally fed-ex's the check to her husbands work. Only instead of the check being for $500, it was for $3000. Yeah im sure you guys all know where Im going with this. So she contacts him and of course he has a story about how his secratary must have made a mistake. So he asks them to deposit the check and then send him the remaining 2500 in return. So they deposit the check. They wait a few days, and their bank posts .it as clear and they western union the money to his "wife" in Houston. Of course it turned out to be fraud and the check bounces, and now they are out $2500.
Why they didn't wonder what was up when they were asked to western union the money and all they got was a check was beyond me. And why they would send a wedding dress to his "wife" is pretty crazy. But none the less, the tears were flowing as she realized she is now 8 months pregnant, and instead of gaining an extra $500 for holiday expenses she is now out $2500. I felt so sorry for her. So please people, don't fall for this!

bananas on board

I have mentioned many times before that I just love Ellen. She says the funniest things. Here is a monologue of hers. I thought I would share.

I live high up on a hill. Not at the top. That's where the castle is. I'm right below. The streets are very narrow, winding and long… they're long and winding roads. I'm going to stop quoting songs in just a minute. I noticed that people drive like crazy on these streets. Sometimes cars are parked on both sides of street, which makes it extra narrow and dangerous. Normal people say, "I should go slower, in case a car is coming," but I guess I don't live around normal people. When I'm driving and I approach someone coming the other way, I slow down, pull over as far as I can and give them that head nod that means, "You go ahead." Usually they just stay there. It's like a four-way stop where nobody makes the first move. So finally, you say, "You had your chance, sucker!" Then you gun it. Then they decide, "Well, maybe I'll go."

The same thing happens with carts at the liquor store… I mean, the grocery store. There's always somebody who leaves their cart in middle of the aisle. I just move it out of the way, but I'll be very casual about it. For some reason, moving someone else's cart seems illegal. I don't know why. It's not even their food yet. They haven't bought it. Technically, you should be able to shop out of their cart if you see something you want. "Oh, these bananas look riper than mine." I think the rule should be: If your shopping cart is blocking the aisle and you're not around to move it, people should be allowed to shop from your cart… or put extra stuff in. So, if you're ever at the grocery store checkout line and the guy in front of you says, "These aren't my bananas!" and then pulls out a five gallon tub of Marshmallow Fluff and says, "I didn't put this in here!" -- you'll know I'm somewhere close by.

Eight Words with Two Meanings

1 THINGY (thing-ee) n..
Female...... Any part under a car's hood.
Male..... The strap fastener on a woman's bra.

2. VULNERABLE (vul-ne-ra-bel) adj.
Female.... Fully opening up one's self emotionally to another.
Male..... Playing football without a cup.

3. COMMUNICATION (ko-myoo-ni-kay-shon) n .
Female.... The open sharing of thoughts and feelings with one's partner.
Male... Leaving a note before taking off on a fishing trip with the boys.

4. COMMITMENT (ko- mit-ment) n.
Female.... A desire to get married and raise a family.
Male...... Trying not to hit on other women while out with this one.

5. ENTERTAINMENT (en-ter-tayn-ment) n.
Female.. A good movie, concert, play or book.
Male...... Anything that can be done while drinking beer.

6. FLATULENCE (flach-u-lens) n.
Female.... An embarrassing byproduct of indigestion.
Male....... A source of entertainment, self-expression, male bonding.

7 MAKING LOVE (may-king luv) n.
Female...... The greatest expression of intimacy a couple can achieve.
Male.. Call it whatever you want, just as long as we do it.

8. REMOTE CONTROL (ri-moht kon-trohl) n.
Female.... A device for changing from one TV channel to another.
Male... A device for scanning through all 375 channels every 5 minutes

Caveman style

So I have decided, why wait around for the perfect man to drop in my lap or to realize that I really am the peanut butter to his jelly. So why wait, that's what people of today do, but why? I say we kick it cave man style and I just club him, drag him to my cave and make him mine. We will life happily ever after as Mr and Mrs caveman. We can have little caveman children and rest at ease at night on our little rock pillows. What more could I ask for?

Love the skin that you're in

Most of us, especially girls and women, are assaulted with negative messages about our bodies on a regular basis by magazines and newspapers, advertisements, "well meaning" family members, peers, and even friends. We're shown computer-manipulated images of the "perfect" body—a body that is not natural for the vast majority of us, and can only be obtained through self-abuse and starvation. We are all so worried about what other people think, and that we need to be more like this or more like that, that we lose site of who we really are. And what I have come to find out over a long long time of not doing this myself is we need to love ourselves, in order to BE loved. We need to be happy with who we are now, or we will never be happy with ourselves or we will never truly be happy any other way. My uncle Mike was talking to me several years ago when I was still a teenager, and I think he gave me some incredible advice. He told me to love myself how I am right now, how I am today. I needed to love ME, not the me I could be, or want to be, but the ME that I am right this very minute. He said his wife always would say, "if I could be this much skinnier, then I will be happy, and then I will love myself." Now years later, not only is she not any skinnier but she is actually a lot bigger than she ever was. And now she finds herself wishing she could get back to where she started. Her original weight, the one she wasn't happy with in the first place. He said she didn't learn to love herself the way she was, and when things changed she wanted nothing more than the old self, the one she thought she didn't love. The problem was never him not loving her, that was something he has always done, she just had a hard time loving herself. How often do we find ourselves wishing part or parts of us could be different than they are..."if only I had this, then I would truly be happy"? I fall victim to this as much as if not more than anyone else. But how can we really and truly allow someone to love us, if we do not in fact love ourselves? I find many times that I cannot accept compliments from people, because I myself do not believe them to be true about myself. I find it hard to believe that someone sees positive things in me, because most of the time all I can see are my faults. There is nothing wrong with wanting to better yourself, but if wanting a better you does not allow you to love who you are now, then you are doing a great disservice to yourself. You really could be missing out on getting to know someone truly great, and that someone is YOU. Total self acceptance is something that rarely comes easily. Oh sure, we might easily fool ourselves into thinking that we love ourselves completely until something happens that tests our ideal thinking (divorce, weight gain, job loss, etc.). Do you love yourself without question? Or do you rely on other people to assure you of your physical desirability and worthiness of love? Some of us just don't realize that there is someone great staring right back at them in the mirror, all we have to do is look. We often treat our friends better than we treat ourselves. We greet them with happiness and affection. We listen to them with compassion and understanding, and we don't try to silence them when they need to grumble or complain. And we are always unequivocally, unalterably on their side. How much of this do we do for ourselves? Bottom line, in order to be loved we have to love ourselves, we are good people and gosh darn it we need to know that and love and accept ourselves for who we are.
Now that doesn't mean that we can't want to change, but only if we are doing it for the right reasons. If we first love ourselves, but merely want to improve upon the greatness that we have already achieved. Looks can only get u so far in life, but then do you no good if there is no substance beneath the surface. This is something I must strive for every day, and its not something I am always very good at. Every day I must make a conscious effort to love me for me. I am a child of God, if that doesn't make me great, what does?

Fun with the Camera Phone

In keeping with the picture theme I have been using here are some fun pictures I had on my phone. Gotta love playing with the frames!

Old Skool

I was trying to post a comment to my coworkers blog and its on msn so it required me to sign in. I noticed that it had a really really really old picture of me. So I and to go look at the pictures. WOW talk about a change from then to now. LOL Thought I would share.

I think this is right before I started nursing school

Sharon Me and Lauralee playing on the webcam

Lauralee and I taking a break in the dressing room while shopping

My hair!!!! What was I thinking?!?!

Feels like home

Nothing speaks to me like music, and in many instances movies. And the combination of the two if done just right is magical.

Addiction

I have a confession to make: I'm a blogophile.

I had no intention of becoming a blogophile. It just happened. Ive got a taste of it and I can't stop. Now I'm hopelessly addicted.

Let me start again. Hi. My name's Rachel and I'm a blogophile.

This is where you all say, 'Hi, Rachel' and give me encouraging smiles.

I have a tendency that when I like something, I want to do it over and over again. I guess you could say in a way I have an addicting personality. I am not passionate about many things. But when I really like something I like it a lot. There are certain foods, shows, people, things etc. I become addicted. They bring me happiness and joy and so I want to have them over and over. So for now I will have to go to BA. Bloggers Anonymous. I have an addiction.

Clearing up a few misconceptions

QUESTION & ANSWER SESSION

Q: I've heard that cardiovascular exercise can prolong life; is this true?
A: Your heart is only good for so many beats, and that's it... Don't waste them on exercise Everything wears out eventually. Speeding up your heart will not make you live longer; that's like saying you can extend the life of your car by driving it faster. Want to live longer? Take a nap.

Q: Should I cut down on meat and eat more fruits and vegetables?
A: You must grasp logistical efficiencies. What does a cow eat? Hay and corn. And what are these? Vegetables .. So a steak is nothing more than an efficient mechanism of delivering vegetables to your system. Need grain? Eat chicken. Beef is also a good source of field grass (green leafy vegetable). And a pork chop can give you 100% of your recommended daily allowance of vegetable products

Q: How can I calculate my body/fat ratio?
A: Well, if you have a body and you have fat, your ratio is one to one. If you have two bodies, your ratio is two to one, etc.

Q: What are some of the advantages of participating in a regular exercise program?
A: Can't think of a single one, sorry. My philosophy is: No Pain...Good!

Q: Aren't fried foods bad for you?
A: You're not listening...Foods are fried these days in vegetable oil. In fact, they're permeated in it. How could getting more vegetables be bad for you?

Q: Will sit-ups help prevent me from getting a little soft around the middle?
A: Definitely not! When you exercise a muscle, it gets bigger. You should only be doing sit-ups if you want a bigger stomach.

Q: Is chocolate bad for me?
A: Are you crazy? HELLO Cocoa beans! Another vegetable. It's the best feel-good food around! !

Q: Is swimming good for your figure?
A: If swimming is good for your figure, explain whales to me.

Q: Is getting in-shape important for my lifestyle?
A: Hey! 'Round' is a shape! !

Well, I hope this has cleared up any misconceptions you may have had about food and diets.


And remember:

'Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways - Chardonnay in one hand - chocolate in the other - body thoroughly used up, totally worn out and screaming, 'WOO HOO, What a Ride!'

True Beauty

What makes a person truly beautiful? Executive producers Tyra Banks ("The Tyra Banks Show," "America's Next Top Model") and Ashton Kutcher (executive producer of "Punk'd" and "Beauty and the Geek") re-define the concept of beauty in a wildly revealing new ABC series, "True Beauty," premiering, MONDAY, JANUARY 5, 2009 (10:00-11:00 p.m., ET) on the ABC Television Network.

The series will determine the "True Beauty" of six stunning females and four handsome males who will live together in a spectacular Los Angeles mansion as they undergo a series of challenges to determine who is truly the most beautiful.

The gorgeous contestants assume they're being judged solely on their outer appearance. They're only half right; outer beauty is one component the judges are looking for, but contestants are also being evaluated -- unbeknownst to them -- for their INNER beauty as well when they're put through scenarios and situations that require them to make moral decisions.

Each episode will showcase an outer beauty and an inner beauty challenge, during which contestants will be judged on everything from how well they perform in photo shoots to how well they respect their elders. The three judges will observe and critique the contestants' behavior and eliminate one person each week. Only after someone is eliminated will the truth about the show be revealed to him/her, as they watch a video montage of their behavior captured by a hidden camera during the shoot. At the end of eight episodes, one winner will be declared, a person who is truly beautiful inside and out.

I saw a preview for this show the other day and it really got me thinking. With all that is going on in this world, and how beauty has been perceived with images of what we should look like flashed all over television and magazines its about time that there was something out there to show that someone who simply has looks may look great on the outside, but is often very lacking on the inside. You know as the old saying goes, "Beauty is only skin deep." Yes being beautiful on the outside is a great thing, but looks fade and you are often left with a hollow soul. To me looks are great, of course you want to look at someone and feel at least a tinge of attraction. But what are looks without character, honor, loyalty, humor, kindness, security, flexibility, patience, respect, understanding, faith, and so on.

Beauty they say is in the eye of the beholder. However, it is becoming increasingly evident that being perceived as ugly can seriously detract from one's quality of life, while being attractive can bring a whole raft of benefits. The hospital I work at has a specialty of working with craniofacial kids. Children born with different facial anomalys fly in from all over the country to see our doctors in hopes for a better look, a better appeal to be more "normal."As the surgery saves the lives of these patients, patients are thankful for it. Patients with clefts and facial deformities due to rare syndromes also have their lives transformed by craniofacial surgery. Children with Apert's syndrome and similar rare diseases find that their faces become physically deformed. Being stared at in the street is often the least of their concerns. It is the sense of being differentiated from 'normal' looking people that hurts the most.

So what is beauty, who gets to decide?

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that frightens us most. We ask ourselves, 'Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, and famous?' Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that people won't feel insecure around you. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in all of us. And when we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”
Maryanne Williamson

Take Cover

At around 11 o' clock last night my sister Lauralee called me at the request of my mother to ask me if the tornado sirens were going off because they just had there, and according to the news it was headed my way. I told her that my back door was open, that I had a fire going and that it was just sprinkling and that I was sure I was going to be fine. She hung up. Not even a minute after that the sirens started going off. And with my door open I could hear someone over a loud speaker at the high school across the freeway say that "this was a tornado warning and to take cover." I still really wasn't worried, ive heard it many times before living in McKinney. But I turned on the news on channel 8 to humor my mother. And then my mom called again. She said that it was not far from where I lived and that I needed to listen to what she said and to take cover. So I hung up and watch the tv for a bit longer, and then decided to humor her. What could it hurt. So I grabbed the dogs bones and their big pillow and went into the hall bathroom. The dogs were quite nervous, they didn't enjoy being confined into that little bathroom. So when I climbed in the tub to sit, Daisy climbed in with me too. It wasn't but a minute or two that we were in there, before my mom called and first told me to get a blanket to put over my head but shortly after that told me that it appeared to be going east and that i should be in the clear to get out. But since we were crammed in the tub together, I decided to take a few pics. I was laughing the whole time, I probably should have been scared but I wasn't.