Happiness Project Month #6: Grown Up Adult Stuff

"I am old enough to see how little I have done in so much time, and how much I have to do in so little." ~Sheila Kaye-Smith

Fact: this blog is going to be boring. I understand if you want to stop reading right now. But you know, I seem to keep becoming more and more convinced that a lot of things about being an adult are boring, so bear with me.

For this month's Happiness Project goal, I wanted to focus on some adult grown up stuff that I have been trying to tackle for over a year. (See a list of all my goals here).

When I got started, I knew that there were a minimum of four documents that I wanted to create to accomplish my Happiness Project goals: (1) a will; (2) an advanced healthcare directive; (3) a power of attorney; and (4) a list of all important account information.

(Sidenote: Learning to edit my photos--took both of the ones you see here!)

I know this is not exciting, but I wanted to give you a quick summary of the documents that I drafted up just in case you might be interested in doing the same thing. Mind you--I am NOT giving any legal advice whatsoever--and laws vary by state, so be sure you consult an attorney in your state to be sure everything is done in accordance with the law. (My boss would be proud of me for remembering the disclaimer!)

Here we go--

(1) A will. Because I don't have any kids and I don't have that much money or property, having a will was probably not a necessity. States have what are called intestacy statutes that provide who gets a person's estate if she dies without a will. In my case, my parents would get everything, which would be fine. But....I wanted to do a will for two reasons. First, as an attorney, I feel like I SHOULD have one. Second, let's be real.....I sort of like the idea of being able to control a few things even after I've gone onto my reward (as Gran would say!) A will does not have to be complex--mine is pretty simple--it gives a few certain material things to certain people and directs some money to go to certain things, and that's about it. One important consideration is to decide who will be the executor of your estate---the person who will ensure that your wishes are carried out and who is responsible for a lot of the paperwork necessary when a person dies.

(2) An advanced heathcare directive. (Also called a healthcare power of attorney) I think you probably all remeber when this was thrust into the news back in the day with Terri Shivo. Well, an AHD just sets out your wishes with regard to medical treatment in the event that you are incapacitated. At least in my state, you can either make your wishes clear (i.e. I do/do not want life support) or you can have your agent decide for you. Some important considerations: (a) what do you want to make the decision?; (b) does your agent know what you want him/her to do?; (c) will your agent be able to make a difficult decision?; (d) do you want more than one person making the decision (this would be called co-agents)? It's not fun to think about, but it's important.

(3) A power of attorney. Again, all states are different, but here, you need a separate document to allow a person to care for your finances/property than the document providing for your medical decisions. The POA deals with the former. There are a few different kinds of POA's (some that are effective only upon your incapacitation, some that end at the time you become incapacitated) so it is important to understand what you are creating. POA's terminate once the person dies.

(4) A list of information. I'm crazy independent. This could be a problem one day. So I made a list of information that someone might need if I was hit by a bus. I listed out each account that I have, where it is located and the account number. Similarly I listed out any debts/credit cards with account numbers. After that, I listed out all of my insurance information (health, car, house) including the agent names and policy numbers. I also made a list of my monthly bills so that if someone had to try and keep my credit rating in tact, they could do so easily. This kind of list is also important in the event that a person dies because their executor will be responsible for certain things (like taxes) and, in order to complete his job, he will need to locate all of the person's accounts and assets. Along those same lines, I listed out any material assets (car, cows, sheep, etc) that I own.

Okay....boring lesson over! I know you are all bored and are wondering, "How did this make her happier when it made me want to poke my eyes out?" Well, I love to be able to cross things off of a list. Getting this done had been on a list for over a year, so I'm really glad to have it over with! Of all the HP themes I have done so far, I will admit, this was the least fun....but I am happy to know that all of this is in order and behind me! Stay tuned next month and I'll do my best to spice it up a little!

Meet The Cast Monday #5: Gran (Part I)

As I mentioned last week, I'm excited to do several Meet the Cast Mondays featuring Gran. I did this interview with her in April 2002, when she was 79 years old. Hope you guys enjoy!

Were you named after anybody?
I was named after my mother whose name was Amy Mae.
Where did you grow up?
18 miles west of Tatum on a ranch and farm and country store. {You guys read about that in this post previously!}
What was it like to grow up on a ranch in the 1920’s? Nobody had any money, neighbors would visit back and forth a lot, because you didn’t go to any town to shop. You grew your own vegetables and fruits.

Is there anything that’s the same about living on a ranch today as it was back then? Well, just you have to clean your shoes when you came out of the cow lot. About the only thing I can think of.

You’ve been a rancher now for almost 80 years, so what advice would you have for someone who wanted to become a rancher? You don’t need to expect a lot of money from anything. But enjoy life, because you’re out in the country and no close neighbors.

When you grew up, what did your parents do for a living? Just about anything they could think of. We had a garden and we grew vegetables and canned. Besides raising cattle, my dad had a little country store and he sold gas and oil, a few groceries, and he would fix flats for people and put a patch inside tires. And I guess that’s about it, well, my brothers would work out for laboring, day labor maybe, and they were paid a dollar a day.

What was it like to grow up with 4 brothers, you being the only girl? Good and bad. They boys wouldn’t ever let me go out to the barn, they didn’t want me out there at all. When it was milking time, if I would go over there to try and figure out how to milk, they would squirt it in my face. So I didn’t learn that technique. My dad wouldn’t let me wear any pants at all. He had four boys and he wasn’t going to have me wearing pants.

What’s your favorite memory of the family that you grew up with? Well, everyone played some sort of musical instrument. My dad played the fiddle and my brothers all played a stringed instrument, banjos and guitars. And then, later on, my dad bought a piano for $80 and we hauled it in a two-wheel trailer from Tatum and I took lessons then, finally. But one of my brothers could play it a lot better than I could with lessons, and he’s still going on it.

Then we’d all get together on Fourth of July and we had a big picnic for all the neighbors and they’d bring a covered dish, and we had a tank down there and swings at the old place, and a lot of trees and shade. Sometimes we’d have parties at my house and everybody in the community were Baptist. And Baptists don’t believe in dancing, so some of us kinda got around that by having what we called swinging plays. I don’t know if anyone knows what I’m talking about here. Well like a little song, “Oh we got a new pig in the parlor.” We’d have to do that outside on the ground, no lawns, because there wasn’t room in the houses for that many.

I know when I was little we would always have a New Year’s Party and a Halloween picnic. Is that where the idea for that came from?
Yes.

Where did you go to high school?
Tatum, New Mexico.


What was different about high school then from high school now?
Oh goodness. Course this was a small school, everybody knew everything about everybody else. {Some things don't change apparently...remember this blog?} There was still no money. If you got a new dress, you were mighty happy to wear it the first day of school. Let’s see. We didn’t have much freedom in high school then. You went from class to class and that was all day long. Well, like for home economics, we had a little building out to the side which was considered a home and we learned housekeeping and all kinds of things over there, just for girls. And I learned how to make good candy there, and we’d never known. My mother wasn’t a good candy maker, so I learned to make good candy. {Did I learn anything this useful in school?}

Were you involved in any clubs or sports in school?

Well, I played tennis some. And that’s about it, I went to a track meet at Hobbs and maybe got 4th place maybe. That’s county-wide. And, then I was in the band. And that was really a wonderful experience. I played a horn, I didn’t have the money to buy one, so the school furnished it. And I took good care of it. And my brother was in it and we made band trips and some of us hadn’t ever been out of the county, I guess, and we’d go to Hobbs and Lovington and one time went to a band clinic in Plainview, Texas and that was out of state.

Stay tuned....in a couple of months I'll post Part II. You can hear Gran talking about college and World War II!

Project 64: Week 4 - Robin's Egg Blue

I don't know about you guys, but I get excited every week to see the new color theme! Here was the crayon inspiration this week:

This week, I have a little bit of a funny story. On Sunday afternoon, I got a short break from working all day (and night...) and decided to pick up my Aggie Friend to go take a few pictures at the river (you saw one of those yesterday) and hit the grocery store. While I was waiting for her, I noticed this door on the house next to hers. I told her I had to take a few pictures because "one of these days that door will be the color of my photo challenge." I'm apparently psychic....because the next day, the same color was announced as the theme for this week!

So, I give you my version of Robin's Egg Blue!

In case you missed my other photos, be sure to check out yellow green, carnation pink, and chestnut.

And, to see photographs from lots of people who actually know what they are doing, check out the Project 64 website!

Photos of the Week: Week 4

First off.....I'm happy to announce the winner of our January Giveaway....Jennifer Zachary! (Shoot me a facebook message with your address and I'll get it in the mail to you!) Thanks for playing everyone!

Well our little project continues this week! I am happy to report that this little project got me out and about and seeing things that I hadn't seen before! I had a great time doing some exploring around and think that it paid off in the pictures I got! I also focused on doing a little bit of editing this week on each of the photos (with tutoring from The Bride). I am brand new at this, but it was fun to play with the different effects. To show you the differences, I put the before and after photos for you to compare. Hope you guys enjoy!

Theme: Hopes and Dreams

(Before)

I was in Santa Fe last week meeting with a client. I went up a little early so that I would have time to stop by the St. Francis Cathedral and to take pictures of the Loretto Chapel (you'll see pictures of that in the coming weeks!) I love the St. Francis Cathedral--it's beautiful and peaceful, and it was a great place to start my morning! While I was walking in, I noticed the Prayer of St. Francis on the wall. While I had only intended to take photos inside Loretto, I quickly took out my camera to get a shot of this plaque. When I edited, I loved how the photo almost looked like a light was shining on the words. Anyway, this is one of my favorite prayers, and I hope to live my life this way!

Theme: Liquid

(Before)

When I saw this was the theme for the week, I knew immediately that I had to go take some photos at the river. I hate to admit it, but I had never been on the path next to it.....I'm SO glad that this little project got me out exploring because it is beautiful down there! I had several shots that I liked, but this one was my favorite. I'm hoping to find a way to either use the others for an upcoming theme, or incorporate them into a blog post.....so stay tuned (and cross your fingers for a theme of "bridge"soon!)

Theme: Tree

(Before)

Lucky for me, there were a lot of tree photo options at the river! I took several "normal" tree shots, but really liked the strange angle of this one for some reason. I loved this focus that made the sky brighter and the focus more on the center of the picture.

Theme: Tired

(Before)

I love my bed. And my bedding. And my whole room, actually. And when I get really tired, all I can think of is snuggling up under the covers! I thought that the editing just made the lighting better and some of the colors pop more.

Ten Personal Commandments (Happiness Project Book Club)

"Well... We want you to be happy. Let's figure out what does that and let's do that." ~Sean Unger (giving me life advice)

So as you guys might remember, I'm currently in the middle of my Happiness Project! Even though I've already gotten started (read about my start here), I joined a blog book club that will be going through the book together!

When I went back and re-read the introduction, I decided that in my hurry to get my project started and to get my life organized/energized that first month, that I didn't take much time to think about some of the ideas that the author discussed in the book.

One of these points that I glossed over the first time was creating Twelve Commandments. The author identified twelve commandments that she would try to live by--that would help her to live a happier life. Why did she do this? She explained, "I didn't want to look back, at the end of my life or after some great catastrophe, and think, 'How happy I used to be then, if only I'd realized it." You and me both, sister!

(Sidenote: Yes I took this picture!)

So.....I have come up with ten of my own personal commandments and I've printed these out and put them a few places that I'll see them every day. (I felt bad that I didn't have 12, but then I realized there is some precedent for 10 commandments, so I'm good!) I'm tossing around the idea of doing a blog on each of these....thoughts?

- My life is now.

- Be kind. Everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle. (If it was good enough for Confucius...)

- I am enough.

- Why not?

- The people who care about me are always there for me.

- Don't miss any miracles.

- There are some things I just cannot fix.

- Pray every day.

- If I don't like it: change it or get over it.

- If I don't, who will?

Even if you don't do your own Happiness Project (which you should!), I would still recommend taking a little time to think about your own personal commandments. It's a simple exercise, but I think that it may change the way I try to look at things and situations!

Remembering The Ten

"No true Cowboy could ever forget." ~Doug Gottlieb

At Oklahoma State, we always Remember the Ten.

Ten years ago tonight, a plane carrying ten members of the OSU basketball family crashed on its way home from a game in Colorado. There were no survivors.

Those lost were two basketball players, a student trainer, radio announcers, student assistants, basketball opertion officers, pilots, and media directors. They were also (and more importantly) someone's sons, fathers, brothers, cousins, husbands and friends. And they were Cowboys. Which means that, to all of us, they were like family.

Last night, Oklahoma State hosted Texas at home. Before the game, all of the players, OSU and Texas, wore the same warm ups. Basketball is big in the Big 12. Clearly, everyone realizes that some things are bigger.The Ten were honored at halftime. OSU basketball retired the #10 jersey, in memory of the 10th anniversary of the crash. No other jersey has ever been retired.

The pain that the anniversary of a death brings is fresh and raw and never goes away. Please keep the families and friends of these men in your prayers today. If you want to read more about these men, I blogged about this last year here and here. Doug Gottlieb, a former OSU player, wrote a wonderful article last year as well. And yesterday, this heartbreaking article about Nate Fleming, a freshman walk-on, was posted.

What I'm Loving Wednesday #1

“We tend to forget that happiness doesn't come as a result of getting something we don't have, but rather of recognizing and appreciating what we do have.” ~Frederick Keonig

The Blonde Oklahoma Girl has joined a little Wednesday tradition on her blog that she stole from this blog, and I thought that I'd join in this week! So....here is a list of things that I'm currently loving this Wednesday!

1. This blog by the Blonde Oklahoma Girl. She describes our friendship--that between Miss America and Miss Football--perfectly! And, yes, I would have been a killer good linebacker for OSU or Notre Dame! (I thought the pictures below were a perfect representation of Miss Football and Miss America....you can guess who is who.)

2. My Specialties semi sweet chocolate chip cookies that Cousin Kevin got me from San Francisco while he was at some food show promoting Big Little Fudge. PS--they were totally a hit at the show.....go Cousin Kevin!

Anyway, these cookies were my FAVORITE thing when I lived in SF (and part of the reason I gained 8 pounds that summer!). Cousin Kevin was awesome enough to make a pit stop to send me some. He's my favorite. (There is a slight possibility that as soon as I got one out of the box, I hid it so as not to have to share with anyone at work....no judgment.) :)

3. "Are You Gonna Kiss Me Or Not" by Thompson Square. I think this song is totally adorable! I played it on repeat for most of the day yesterday. Check it out for yourself:

4. This blog by Caroline at A Life of Color. I talk about similar issues on this blog once or twice, and even more frequently with my girl friends. I love the fact that there are other girls out there who feel the same way as me! I really can't add much to what she said.....other than ditto!

5. That in 10 days I will be seeing the Oklahoma Girls and SoulMate Friend in Stillwater for.....Little Linebacker's FIRST BIRTHDAY PARTY!!

6. That some days, God seems to reach right down and whack me upside my head. Monday was a super stressful day at work, I learned that the insurance company had denied my MRI for the second time because it was not medically necessary (even though it was ordered by A DOCTOR....don't get me started) and I was tired and cranky and feeling pretty sorry for myself. Then I came home and found this blog. That, my friends, was the whack He knew I needed. Forget my problems. Let's all say a prayer for that family!

7. You like me, you really like me! It seems like I was stuck at 27 followers FOREVER....but now I'm up to 59 and I know that there are a few people who read but don't follow! I appreciate all of you taking the time to read my ranting and I'd LOVE for you to become a follower! And I'd love to hear what posts are your favorites or if you have any blog ideas!

January Giveaway!

“Have the courage to live. Anyone can die.” ~ Robert Cody

Okay, first off, I just have to tell ya'll that I actually won a blog giveaway myself!! I was SO excited to get this awesome calendar from Little Thoughts! Thanks so much, Lindsay!

Second.....Michabella at Living a Life of Love is doing a giveaway of.....wait for it....SHOES!! Yes, I said SHOES! Check it out here!

Third....it is apparently the BEST month EVER for giveaways, because Neely at A Complete Wast of Makeup (how great is that blog title??) is giving way a $50 gift card and....best part....you get to pick between several different stores including.....wait for it.....BANANA REPUBLIC and TARGET! So have my fingers crossed on that one!! :)

And finally....to my blog for the day! Now that this month is almost over (does anyone else feel like it was just New Year's Eve??), it's time for our January giveaway!

I don't believe in New Year's resolutions. I think that they just set up you for failure. And, I am always annoyed for the first two weeks of the year when I have to wait on a treadmill or weight machine because of all the "resolutionists" who invade the gym.

But I do love the idea that each year begins anew and we have the opportunity to set goals and priorities and figure out all of the fun things that we intend to do for that coming year. So...with that in mind, we have the January giveaway!


I have a copy of a mini-book called "98 Things a Woman Should Do in Her Lifetime" that I will be giving away to our lucky drawing winner. (Sorry any boys who read this and are bummed about this giveaway---I really did look for something similar for men, but apparently one hasn't been written!) Here's a great quote from the book just to give you a little taste, "Life is too short for ironing, nonfat dairy creamer, and regret of any kind." My kind of book!

HOW TO ENTER

You can enter one of two ways (or both)!

1. Leave a comment on this blog or on the facebook post of it telling me one goal for the year and I'll give you one entry!

2. If you are a follower or become a follower the blog (see directions here), I'll give you 5 entries. Be sure to leave a separate comment letting me know you are a follower so I can enter you!

Enter by Thursday, January 27 at 6:00 pm and I will announce the winner on Friday! Good luck!

Meet the Cast Monday #4: A Twist

"What children need most are the essentials that grandparents provide in abundance. They give unconditional love, kindness, patience, humor, comfort, lessons in life. And, most importantly, cookies." ~Rudolph Giuliani

I hated my ITV English class in high school. I shouldn't say that...the class itself wasn't so bad, except for that the teacher hated our school and then accused me of cheating. Yea....ME. I was so irate. Not only would I not cheat for moral reasons, but I think I was more insulted that the teacher thought that I thought there were people in the class that were smarter than I was (which, there were, but it's a pride thing that you don't actually admit that!)

Anyway, I know you are all wondering what this has to do at all with Meet the Cast Monday. Well, it is thanks to that teacher that I am announcing a Meet the Cast Monday twist.

As you know from reading the blog, my grandmother was one of my favorite people in the world. She lived right next door growing up, so it was like she was a third parent raising Little Brother and me. You also know that she passed away in 2004. Well....thanks to that English class I hated, a few Meet the Cast Mondays this year will star.....Gran.

How you ask? Well, one assignment for that English class was to do an interview with the past. Obviously, Gran was my choice. We had to tape record the interviews and write a paper on them. As I was cleaning out some drawers a couple weekends ago, I stumbled across that tape. After hunting down a cassette player (talk about feeling old....I remember when that was ALL I had and now I can't find one anywhere!) I wrote out each question and answer. I will be posting them over the nex year periodically in Meet the Cast Monday style.

I'll start this up next week, but to give you a little sneak peak at what is to come:

Is there anything that’s the same about living on a ranch today as it was back then?

"Well, just you have to clean your shoes when you came out of the cow lot. That's about the only thing I can think of."

So thank you, mean English teacher for assigning this project. Makes it worth having been called a cheater to have this memory of Gran and to be able to share it with everyone!

Project 64: Week 3 - Chestnut

Okay....when I saw that this week's color was Chestnut, this country girl started looking for a horse! My current residence in the city was not so helpful, and then life seemed to get in the way of my search! So, sadly, I had to go with something else....but I think it worked out okay!

So, here we have this week's photo.....I give you.....Chestnut!

I liked how this photo had both the redish-brown chestnut color of the crayon itself on the branch and the tips of the pinecone, and the lighter color of the crayon paper!

This picture is actually a great example of how much fun this project is! I found these little pinecones on a tree right in front of my house.....and although I've lived here going on 2 years, I had NEVER noticed it before! Shame on me!

If you missed my first two photos, be sure to checkout yellow-green and carnation pink! And to check out all of my photography challenge posts, click here!

And, as always, go check out the people who actually know what they are doing at Project 64! It's not too late to start your project--61 more colors left to go--it might open your eyes to the trees around you!