Hello friends,

What a most wonderful day this is!! The day after the unexpected big snow of March 2008. I am so very thankful I was at home to enjoy the snow with my family and animals. After taking pictures and playing in the snow, I baked snowball cookies and strawberry bread to further celebrate the day. I think I laughed every time I looked out the window: God's gift of the snow and me being at home made me so glad. I did harvest some snow to make snow ice cream at a later date. "This is the day that the Lord hath made! Let us rejoice and be glad in it!"

There is lots on my mind that I am eager to share and on which to gain your most valuable input. However, I'm so very amazed at having my own blog I must dwell on that first. Dear friends Wendy and Shelly have been urging me to create a blog for some time but having an innate fear of technology as well as a deep laziness towards technology.... Suffice it to say, I have arrived at a new place!! It was not so very scary after all!

There are 2 things right this second about which I am so excited and hopeful. Rick, me, Lane and Dave attended the Dave Ramsey Seminar at Reunion Arena a couple of Saturdays ago. I have newfound hope for our future, retirement to be specific. Dave Ramsey gave us the common sense tools and the explicit go ahead that it is never too late to start getting your finances in order. We've lived debt free for years but have failed to plan for retirement. (Let me also add this addendum and apology: I did place my family in debt when we put in the pool 2 years ago.) Please let me qualify the word "retirement." In the Duwe's dictionary, retirement is defined something like this: "When older and if unable to work, there will be adequate assets to provide for the Duwe's upkeep and not be a financial drain on anyone." I fully expect to be breaking a sweat the day I cross over. So anybody who wants to talk finances, please feel free to do so. I will be blatantly honest with you on the mistakes we have made so that perhaps you will not walk down the same path. Also, I am going to facilitate Financial Peace University at our church starting April 6th so I am educating myself and becoming well versed in Dave Ramsey's teachings.

On a very fun note, this is what I have challenged myself to do, as a result of the seminar, through the month of March:
I have placed myself under house arrest so to speak. This means I have restricted myself from any trips to town except for church and work. If I go to town for anything else, I must either ride my bike or hitch a ride with someone else. I guarantee you, this is going to save me much time and money! Another challenge self incurred is to not invite anyone over for the month of March (excluding family and, boy do I have a large family). Let me give you Andrea's definition of family.... Well, many of you know! Another challenge: $200 budget on food for the month of March. Now granted we do have a freezer with meat and January's visit to Costco so don't despair: we will not starve! By the way friends whom I worship with on Sunday: I am serving beans and rice, rice and beans each Sunday after morning services except when the youth fund raisers are going on. I'm a sneaky thing; I may not get to have you over, but we are still going to sup and conversate together!

I almost forgot about the second big thing on my mind: my old passion food and how it interplays with every single thing we think, say and do. I discover more and more every day. I highly recommend that you check out the book The Schwarzbein Principle by Diane Schwarzbein, MD. (Okay, where is the little underliner thingee on the toolbar to show that this is a book? Somebody help me, please!) Start today to feed yourself and your family well! Educate yourself! Dr. Schwarzbein's book is a great place to start. Since January 1st, in my efforts to defeat depression, I have cut out sugar, white flour, chips and chocolate. I vowed I would be chipless, sugarless, white flourless and chocolateless for one year but am considering making this a life time change. I am feeling remarkably better and happier and am much more productive. Disclaimer: Remember I am a nurse and I'm going to talk some serious stuff sometimes. One huge benefit I have gained (in addition to lifting my affect and dropping 9 pounds from around my waist), I am effortlessly having a bowel movement every day. On that note...I'll close out. More later....

All for now. I've gotta go figure out how to put pictures and other dittys on my blog. My love to all you lovely people!
Andrea